The Gift of Love
by Converse r life
Summary: Belle looked up at her husband with a hopeful, pleading expression. "We can give her everything she's ever wanted." She whispered, her throat closing and her eyes burning with tears at just the thought of it. "A family." Rated T to be safe!
1. A Strange Finding

A couple walked through the forest trail quietly, admiring the twilight that had set and subconsciously holding hands. The night was still young, but stars that shined from above spoke otherwise. Still, the couple did not waver as they walked through the forest, musing about different memories that had come from here. A smile went on the woman's red lips as she thought of just an hour before.

"It's a wonder we were able to put Alexander to bed tonight." The woman laughed softly, remembering her four year old son. The boy was cute as can be, with his father's hair and mother's brown eyes…but he was a little monster when it was his bedtime.

"It's a good thing his mother has a talent for making bedtime stories imaginative." Vincent teased, as Belle's laugh could be softly heard, musical, but yet all the same so lovely that it would make any man fall in love with her.

"It's a shame that only Alexander seems to like them though. Arabella hasn't been to keen on having a bedtime story lately." Belle remembered with a smile, thinking of her oldest daughter, who was eight years old. The girl had started getting the idea in her head that bedtime stories were for children; something that as an eight year old she was definitely _**not**_.

"Jovianne likes her bedtime stories well enough." Vincent reminded, his cloak absently swishing behind him in the cold night. Soon they'd have to go back to the palace because of the terrible temperature drop…but for now, it seemed the couple could spend just a few minutes with each other, without their kingdom, or their children.

"Jovianne also likes it when you play peek-a-boo." Belle reminded right back to her husband, a soft laugh at the end of her words so that he knew she was only teasing. Their ten month old daughter was really starting to become quite the nuisance. Belle had a hard time finding her in the nursery nowadays, as the baby was crawling all over the play, and absently picking things and putting them into her mouth, which was really starting to frighten her mother that one day she might choke.

"Alright, I'll give you that." Vincent acknowledged his wife's words, before a slow, teasing grin worked onto his features. "But you have to admit that she has the most beautiful blue eyes." Belle snorted playfully at her husband's words, throwing an elbow playfully in his direction at that.

"Says the father who gav—whoah!" Belle suddenly stumbled over something, losing her footing momentarily and almost sliding as she hit a rough patch of ice. Thankfully though, with quick instincts, Vincent reached out an arm and steadied her, making sure she didn't fall.

"Are you alright?" Vincent asked, his features turning into concern as all playfulness left them, for now. Belle gave a slow nod, brushing herself off and straightening her dress, before looking back at her husband to relieve his worry.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for catching me." Belle breathed in a little relief that she hadn't fallen. In this weather she could have twisted her ankle, and then Vincent would have insisted on carrying her back to the palace, as though she was a child.

"Your welcome." Vincent replied, his worried features melting into one of relief. His shoulders dropped as though a ten pound weight had been taken off of them, and he let a relieved sigh escape him, just for a moment, as he saw Belle was suddenly looking back to the spot where she'd stumbled at.

"What did I trip over?" Belle asked; mostly to herself as her brows knit into worry as she looked back a moment. The ground was heavily covered in snow…and yet, there seemed to be a patch there that was…shaking? But…why? And why was it just that spot? With furrowed brows, the woman leaned down a moment to brush off some of the snow. It was probably just a poor woodland creature that was trying to find its way through the snow…but, as the woman brushed off more and more snow, in rapid succession now, she found that it was no woodland creature. No, instead…it was a _girl_.

She couldn't be very old, perhaps thirteen or so. But she shivered hard, her pale fingers digging into the snow as though they were trying to find the warm soil underneath. Her dress—or rags actually—was thin as can be, something more meant for the summer months where the heat was to the extreme, than in the middle of a very cold winter. Her dress looked more like it belonged to a child of ten years or so, considering the length the horribly constricting front part that covered the girl's now growing chest. Horrible black and blue bruises covered her body, as though the child had been through something awful. A dark red liquid matted into her dark brown loose, wild curls that looked as though they'd never seen a comb. One of the child's feet had on what looked like an old boot that was probably a few sizes too large for her. The other foot was bare, the toes furling and unfurling as they tried to keep warm. And throughout all this, the freckled girl shivered hard in the cold, a hot fever raging through her body as she was fitfully asleep, her head turning ever so often as though she was in a bad dream. Horrible as the child looked though; there was something about her that was almost…angelic. However, any angelicacy that Belle saw was gone in a moment, when the girl weakly coughed, her cracked and bleeding lips making a wheezing sound at that, as a few sprinkles of what seemed to be blood fell out from her lips.

"Oh." Belle's heart surged for the poor young thing, as she got down on her knees and brushed aside a few locks from the freckled face of the child. A hot fever surged under her fingers on the girl's face, Belle noticed, with a horrified expression.

"What on earth would a girl be doing out in this weather, with no protection?" Vincent's quiet voice wondered, dropping next to his wife on one knee as he studied the girl. Perhaps the enchantress was giving him another test…? No, impossible. He was no longer a beast inside or out—excepting when he was angry, of course. Still, that little annoying voice of doubt taunted in the back of his head, telling him that this must be some kind of new test.

"Maybe there was some kind of accident." Belle offered a thin explanation, her throat closing up as she saw how the girl shivered and writhed in the horrible pain of her fever, the cold, and her injuries. What if that was her own daughter out here, looking like that? What if that was little eight year old Arabella, shivering and writhing in pain out in this snow? Belle couldn't even _think_ about it.

"I doubt it. Otherwise I would have heard word about it by now." Vincent pointed out, unclasping his cloak and setting it down on the girl, to possibly protect her from the snow. What he didn't know though, was that it was virtuously impossible to protect the girl from the bitter cold after she was exposed to it for so long.

"Then what do you think…?" Belle trailed off as she saw the girl painfully cough again, more blood spilling from her lips in the process. "Never mind." The woman said abruptly, her features changing into one of motherly worry. "We should bring her back to the palace, have the doctor see to her…let her stay for awhile and get better. Or at least, let her stay until we can contact her family." Belle's worried, soft tone said, brushing off another thick dark brown curl from the girl's face to see her better. Her lips were blue from the cold.

"That sounds…reasonable." Vincent said, not quite shaking off the feeling that this was some sort of test. Still, he knew that test or not, he needed to at least give this girl a sense of shelter, and a warm bed, at least until she was able to explain what she was doing out here, this time at night, in the woods alone, with rags for a dress. Gently, with Belle's help, he managed to pick the girl up in his arms, watching as her head lolled to the side deliriously, as he and his wife headed back to the palace.

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**Okay, so this is my very first Beauty and the Beast Story. It's an idea I've had for a long time, but just never got around to posting up, so I'm doing it now! I hope you like it. :) It's not going to be very long. Maybe (I'm terrible at estimates, just know that) 5 or 6 chapters long. I was inspired to findally write it from a really great fanart (the link is posted on my profile) so please, if you want, check it out. The artist is amazing! (Note: The artist is NOT me. My drawing talent stops at stick figures) Anyway, if you like it or hate it, please review!**


	2. Childish Giggles and Fear

"…shh! You're gonna wake her up and then Mama is going to be mad!" A whispered voice said into the quiet room, making a certain girl's foggy mind start to wake up. Though her eyes didn't open to her command, she could hear voices swirling around her head.

"She looks funny." A voice noted, giggling young, childish giggles at just the thought of it.

"Mon Dieu, you are right!" Another voice giggled, as a gummy finger poked at the girl's cheek, and therefore hitting one of the bruises that really did hurt a lot. With a yelp, the girl's eyes flew open, as she immediately flinched, bringing up an arm to protect her face against whoever was there.

"….whatcha doin' that for?" A young voice asked, startling the girl as she blinked once, before slowly lowering her arm and warily looking…at the children before her.

One girl, who seemed to be the leader of the group of three, had amazingly clear blue eyes, with brunette hair falling down her shoulders lightly. Only a small curl had escaped the hair that fell down her shoulders, and that curl fell onto the middle of her forehead, enhancing her already curious features. Another girl, seemed to be perhaps a year or two younger than the first girl, but with long dark hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. Her brown eyes were wary, as her brows pulled together in her confusion. And the last child was a boy of probably four or so, with a mass of light blondish brown locks, which had been pushed up and away from his face, revealing light brown eyes, and a huge childish smile.

"You've got lots of bruises, do you know that?" The boy said, his age making it acceptable for the bluntness of his statement. Slowly, the girl tucked into the bed nodded, not opening her mouth for fear of what would come out.

"Alex! Mama said you have to be nice to people!" The oldest girl stated, in a clear I'm-older-than-you-so-you-have-to-listen-to-me voice. The boy stuck his tongue out at the girl, who in turn stuck her tongue back out at him.

"You can't tell me what to do!" The little boy argued, his expression completely serious as he made sure his sister knew of his point. The girl, in turn, scowled at the little boy, knowing his words to be right.

"Can too!" The girl argued, her features twisting into a heavier scowl at that.

"Can not!" The little boy argued back, his expression equally as angry as his older sister's.

"Can too!"

"Can not!"

"Can to—" The children's petty squabble was quickly stopped when they heard another voice chime in.

"Shh, shh! _Silencieux_! I think I 'ear something…" The girl with the black hair pulled into a ponytail said, moving her head sharply to the direction of the door as her brows furrowed as to who could be making those steps down the hallway.

"I had a feeling I'd find you in here." A quiet musical voice mused, as the door opened up quickly, too quick for the girl lying feverishly on the bed. She flinched heavily, her movement causing Belle's eyes to rest on her for a moment, before they diverted back to the children…and then the girl. "Come on, say your goodbyes and then go outside and play." Belle said, knowing that she'd scold her children later for waking up the poor girl from her deep slumber.

"But Mama…!" The boy and oldest girl whined, not wanting to leave as they knew that the teenage girl inside the palace was one of the most exciting things to happen in awhile.

"No 'buts'. I don't mind if you go want to go outside and play, but you're not going to stay here. Do you understand?" Belle's firm motherly tone said making all three children's faces morph into one of sulking…adorable sulking, since none of the children were over ten.

"Yes your highness." The girl with dark hair mumbled, as the other two children, looking down at their shoes, mumbled 'yes mama'. Belle smiled at all of them; from her two children, Alexander and Arabella, to Gemma, who was Lumiere and Babette's daughter.

"Good. Now run along outside; I saw Chip out there not too long ago…" the thought of Chip made the children immediately light up, as Belle had known it would. The poor fifteen year old boy was constantly being harassed by the younger children, but what was worse is that he had no one _near_ his age to be friends with in the palace.

"Bye!" All three children called over their shoulders to the girl, as they ran out of the room, tripping over hem lines and clumsy footwork as they tried to get to Chip first, before anyone else.

"I'm sorry about them." Belle explained, a bit sheepish as a small, motherly smile fell onto her lips at the thought of the children. "They so rarely see anything interesting, so when something new comes up…well, they're always a bit excited." Belle explained, shaking her head with a small laugh at the thought of all the children…before looking back at the girl on the bed.

The girl was pressed up against the pillows, her face covered in still healing black and blue bruises. A cough escaped her lips, making her entire, weak, thin body shake as though it took so much energy. But what really got Belle wondering was the look in her eyes. It was a look she'd seen before, on herself, years back as a heartbroken girl who'd taken her father's place as prisoner to a ferocious Beast. Even now, married and knowing of the Beast's true human form, the woman still felt the pace of her heart quicken at just the sight of the monster that first time, how he hadn't even let her say goodbye to her father...oh, there was no mistaking the emotion the girl's eyes held.

Pure, cold blooded fear.

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**Well, here is another chapter! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to update! But between this story, school, and my other stories I've had alot of stuff to do! Urgh. High School homework is NOT fun. At all. But at least I'm getting the chance to update this story today...so yeah!**

**If you like this story (or don't like it) review please! Thanks lots!**


	3. Painful Hunger

"Pl-please…don't hur-hurt me… I'm sorry…" The girl managed to choke out, her words a stuttered mess as she tried to warm herself further by slipping deeper into the sheets of the bed. Wait. _Bed_. She was sleeping on a bed! And not like the straw one's the girl had always seen and known…no…this bed felt…comfortable. Like sitting on a cloud…how strange. Was this how wealthy people felt all the time?

"Hurt you?" Belle jerked at the words as though they were a slap in the face. "Why would I want to 'hurt you'? And what exactly are you sorry for?" Belle wondered, not understanding the girl's words. But the girl, who sensed that Belle must not be from back where the girl had originally come from, relaxed a little, her shoulders dropping—just a tiny bit because she was still on her guard—and her eyes being worried and scared.

"Wh-where…am I?" The girl choked out again, her head and eyes looking all over the room…as her jaw went slack. Such a large room! This room was double the size of the room where'd she come from…and she'd shared that room with thirty other children!

"You're in a safe place. My husband and I…well, we found you lying in the snow…and it was so cold…and you were so sick… we brought you back here. That was only two days ago though. You've been running a fever and have been sleeping ever since." Belle explained, her voice gentle as to not to scare the girl anymore than the poor thing already was. Still though, her voice managed to spook the girl who jerked at them, her green eyes growing a bit more frightened…before another feature took hold of her face, all because of a noise that omitted off of her stomach.

It was a loud, angry growl from the girl's that immediately turned the girl's features from frightened…to downright _desperate_. Another growl came then, as the girl's eyes started to fill with tears, as she doubled over in pain, groaning softly and clutching at her stomach. Her head was bent down low, but Belle could still see a tear that fell onto the sheets. The girl tried hard not to cry out in the pain her stomach was giving her at the moment. She was so hungry…so, so hungry…

"What's wrong?" A concerned voice reached the girl's ears, as the girl looked up briefly at the woman, before shaking her dark brown-almost-black thick curly locks, not willing to say what was wrong. "Do you not feel well?" Belle guessed, biting her lip is worry at the poor child who refused to speak what was wrong with her, and only acknowledged the question with a shake of her head. "Are you hungry?" Belle guessed again. This time there was a hesitation, as though the girl was weighing out her options at answering the question, before a slow nod up and down came.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I mean, you've been asleep so long…I just completely forgot that you would need to eat something when you woke up! I'll go get a tray and have it sent up right away, alright? I'll be right back, don't worry." Belle asked, concern filling her features as the child looked up at her with such hopeless, helpless, desperate eyes that the woman knew she _had_ to do something. She couldn't bear to look into the child's green eyes any longer and see…and see her own frightened features as a young woman in them.

For a moment, the door shut softly behind the girl, leaving her completely alone in the room. Still clutching tightly to her stomach, the girl managed to look wondrously around in awe. Such luxury! The girl had only ever known a rotting, old wooden room as _her_ room…and even then she'd shared it with at least thirty other children. This room was twice the size as that, quadruple the warmth, and…well, it was just nice to for once, have an entire room to herself.

Of course, the girl knew, soon she'd be sent back to that horrible place that had been her home. Soon she'd be told how much debt she owed these people for taking her into their home, and soon, the girl knew, she'd be told how to work off her debt to them, for she had no money or really anything else of value. Probably eating was going to be costly, adding more to her already high debt, but the girl's stomach begged for even the slightest morsel of food…but she hadn't eaten in days, and she was literally starving. Just one meal, the girl surmised. Just one, tiny meal, and then she could get up and out of bed, and start working off her debt.

Perhaps, the girl thought wishfully, perhaps after her debt was paid to these people, they'd still keep her around. They wouldn't have to pay her anything; instead they could just give her one meal every day—it did not matter if it was hot or cold, mush or meat, as long as it was food—and a room to stay in. Wouldn't that be just wonderful, the girl dreamed to herself. Of course, she'd have to work herself to the bone to stay…but that would be alright with the girl, as long as she _could _stay.

But…no. It was only a dream. It was only the thing that the girl longed for but knew would be impossible to achieve. No one would ever want her to work for them. She was, for all reasons of practicality, broken. She would be slow in doing her work, because of her bad leg, no matter what work it was. And plus, the girl's only prior working experience was making boots. Not cleaning or anything like that, just making boots. And the girl would die before she went back to slaving away over a table, trying to create a shoe out of thinly spread materials.

"Here we are. Some nice, hot food." Belle's voice floated into the room, as she opened the door with her foot and carried the tray with her hands. She could have just had a servant come up with the tray of food…but the woman preferred to do it herself. And besides, the girl barely trusted her at the moment; imagine if someone completely foreign to the girl just walked into the room with a tray of food!

"S-so much." The girl whispered out, her eyes bulging out of their sockets as the tray was gently placed on her lap. Tray. Add another few things to her debt for having this person bring her an actual _tray_ of _food_! And so much of it too! The girl wondered, briefly, if she would be charged per bite, or if she'd be charged by the amount of food she ate. Or would she be charged for all it all together?

"Not really." Belle said, noting how the girl was gawking at the food as though she'd never seen something like it in her entire life. "It's not nearly enough to make you feel better, but it's enough to take away your hunger, at least, for now." Belle's voice was smooth, gentle and melodic, as it floated into the girl's ears in a way she'd never heard a voice before.

Had the girl heard yelling before? Yes. Had the girl heard screaming before? More than one could imagine. Had the girl heard sarcasm and hurtful words before? Most definitely. But had she ever heard…gentleness in a voice before? Not once in as far back as she could remember.

"Go on, dig in." The woman's light tone said, almost laughing…but the girl could have sworn that the laughing was not _at _her. Rather, she almost knew for a strange fact that the women was trying to laugh _with _her…but laughing was a foreign concept to the child.

Looking warily up at the woman to make sure that it was alright to eat this…extraordinary large meal, the girl did as she was told, and 'dug in'. Literally. The girl grabbed the bowl—ignoring the utensils on the side for the plate, for she didn't know what they were for—and started to slurp it all down at once, causing the hotness of it to spill down her throat like a fire, and her face to become…rather messy. Half of her food she didn't even chew; she was more intent on swallowing it before someone took it from her.

Belle watched the girl messily slurp the chicken soup down with a mixture of polite tolerance, and curiosity. Why had the girl been in so much…pain before? Why had she been clutching at her stomach, driven to tears because of it? Was there something wrong with her stomach? Or had she just been really, that…starving? When had the girl last ate anyway? Her ribs poked out of her skin in an unhealthy way Belle knew, and the nightgown that should have only been a little big on the girl, hung on her as though she it was a limp rag. Of course, it was a hand-me-down nightgown that had been Mrs. Pott's two daughters when they'd been about fourteen or so, and the kindly woman had had nothing against letting the sick girl use it for the time being, seeing as how she had no other clothes…but still. The nightgown should not be so…loose on the girl. It was as if the child had always been confined to barely eating all her life!

The girl set down the bowl of now finished chicken soup and wiped her face off with the back of her arm. Chicken. Hot, juicy chicken and warm noodles all mixed together…it was like a Christmas feast for the girl, who'd rarely experienced such elegant tastes. Thankfully now though, her stomach was…still starving, but it wasn't in pain. Sometimes when she went awhile without eating, her stomach could pain her terribly, though the girl never understood why. It was just food. Why did her stomach need so much of it?

"N-No more." The girl stuttered out, her voice small and pitifully weak in the large room. Falling back against the pillows with exhaustion, the girl struggled to keep awake as she knew that now that she'd eaten, it was time to work. Oh how the girl longed to sleep! To close her eyes, and drift off to a land where things were so different…so different…no! Stay awake!

"Hm? You're finished? You barely ate anything." To the girl, it might have looked like she'd finished off the chicken soup. To Belle, who got a much clearer view of it, she could see only a quarter of the soup was gone, plus the girl hadn't even touched the glass of milk, or biscuit, or apple. The woman was about to tell the girl that she had to eat more if she wanted to get better…when she realized that the girl was struggling to keep awake. With a shake of her head and small smile as she recognized this from her own children, Belle moved the tray off the girl's lap and placed it on the nightstand. "Never mind. Just go to sleep; heaven knows you need it." Belle's gentle voice said with a smile, as she took the covers of the bed and in a motherly fashion, tucking them around the sick girl.

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**Well, here we are, another chapter! As always, please review and say what you thought of it!**


	4. An Orphan Named Juliette

"N-No. H-Have to pay...debt." The girl whispered, forcing her eyes to open up further as she noticed that they were drooping lower and lower to try and get to sleep.

"Debt? What debt?" Belle wondered briefly, her brows furrowing. The child couldn't owe any money—she was too young. So then what was she talking about? Was she an indentured servant? No…she was still too young to be one. Then what…?

"St-stay…here…sleep…e-eat. H-have to…wo-work… " The girl was barely awake now, she was mumbling almost inaudibly. Forcing her eyes to reopen more, the girl struggled to try and get out of the bed and back onto her feet so she could work.

"You can't work; you're still running a high temperature." Belle pointed out, finally realizing what the girl meant, as she pushed the child back down to the bed gently. "And furthermore, you have no debt. You're like…like a guest here, and besides, my husband and I brought you back to our home because we were just being…well, kind." Belle tried to clear up that point as best she could to the girl. The poor thing thought that because she was staying in a nice warm room, in a warm bed, eating hot food, and being taken care of since she was so sick…that she had to 'work off' her debt! Didn't the girl know that people usually did nice things because they were…well, nice?

"Wh-why?" The girl asked, coughing once as her weak body shuddered—or did it shiver?—from the motion. The Queen's shoulders dropped as she tried to think up an appropriate answer for the girl.

"I'm kind to you because…because…" Why _was _Belle so kind to the girl? Was it the fact that she saw so much of herself inside of the poor thing? Or was it because she just felt bad for the girl? What was it? "Because…I just am." That was a safe answer, and it was mostly truthful.

"No o-one…is ki-kind…" The girl managed to whisper out, prodding Belle to spill her reason on why she was being so kind. Everyone had a reason for being kind. No one 'just is'. Everyone was in it for something. A job. A friend. A toy. A new dress.

"Well…I am." Belle said, briefly wondering where this girl had learned all these ideas. People could be kind without reason. People could be kind and there could be nothing in it for them. "Didn't your parents ever teach you that kindness is sometimes just because?"

"No."

"Where are you from again?" Belle wondered, realizing that the girl had never actually said where she was from….and who were her parents. If the woman ever met them, she'd be sure to question them on their ideals and how they were raising their daughter.

"Don't ma-matter…no-not going…back." The girl said firmly, her weak, tired voice making her sound more like a kitten with no real power though. A small smile touched Belle's lips as she realized something about this girl.

"Ah. So you've runaway from your home." Belle's smile couldn't have been more knowing. All teenagers tried to runaway—or at least thought about it at some point. The woman could most definitely relate to _that_.

"I-I left." The girl corrected weakly, her exhaustion showing through to the point that she thought she'd collapse entirely into a deep sleep in the middle of talking to this woman.

"Oh I see." Belle said with a wry grin. "You know, I bet your Mama is worried sick about you. And your Papa must be too." The woman was trying to guilt her into going back 'home', the girl realized. No! She wouldn't go back! Never in a million years could she go back! She'd rather rot in a dungeon than go back!

"Don't got…Mama. O-or…P-Papa." The girl's voice was unemotional at that, smooth as though she really didn't mind not having a mother. Belle's brows furrowed at hearing the girl's words. No mother or father? How terrible! The girl must be living with other family.

"In any case, I think your family must be worried to death about you." Belle said gently, trying to slowly steer the girl into the right direction so that she would understand that running away really wasn't the best option.

"Don't ha-have…family." The girl said, blinking and yawning terribly. She was going to fall asleep any minute now she knew. Any minute now she was going to fall asleep…

"No family? But then…then…that would mean…that would mean that you're a…a…_orphan_?" Belle spluttered in disbelief. The girl only dimly nodded at how Belle had figured out that she had no family. "And if you're an orphan…than you ranaway from…the _orphanage_? " Another dim nod made Belle's heart sink like a ship at sea. No wonder the girl was in such poor health. The woman had heard rumors about orphanages, how they mistreated the children and served barely enough food to keep them alive. Usually, the Queen tuned out the rumors, thinking them as just gossip…but…horribly, what if it _wasn't_?

The girl was almost fast asleep now, her breathing starting to slow as her body still pumped with a fever hot and high fever. Knowing that she might not get a chance to ask in the near future, Belle asked the question she'd been wondering.

"What's your name?" Did orphans even _have_ names, the woman wondered. No, of course they did…right? To be a teenager, and orphan, nearly an inch away from losing your life, so thin that a rail is fatter than you, and not even passed your sixteenth year…*shudder* life must be horrible for the girl.

"Juliette." The girl whispered, coughing slightly, before slowly turning over and falling asleep again, leaving behind a wondering and curious Belle who processed all this new information about the young guest in her mind.

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**Wow. I was not expecting all of that to happen in this chapt****er, were you? I mean, the girl is an orphan, believes she has to pay off her debt, and has no idea why someone would be nice to her without a reason. Wow, intense! Well, at least now there's a name to the girl's face. Do you guys like the name Juliette? I checked and it's French, and I think it's kind of cute with two t's and a e at the end. Anyway, please review, or zombie librarians will come after you! No, I'm just kidding. Zombie Librarians won't come after you if you don't review, though wouldn't it be super cool if they _could_? Hmmm *strokes imaginary Dumbeldore beard thoughtfully*. In any case, review!**


	5. Arguing at Dinner

"…not!"

"Will too!"

"Will not!"

"Will too!"

"Will—"

"Ara and Alex, how many times have I told you _no arguing at the table_?" Belle's thick with annoyance voice rang out to her children, who both stopped their arguing, if only for a moment, before Arabella stuck out her tongue at her younger brother.

"It's not my fault!" The girl protested. "Alex started it!" Arabella's arms crossed over her chest at that, as she narrowed her eyes and stared down her brother. Boys were so dumb sometimes, the girl thought to herself.

"I don't care who started it. I'm ending it." Belle's calm voice said, trying to stop her arguing children, and she could hear her father chuckling at the familiar sight. Maurice had moved into the castle after the wedding, to be closer to his daughter, and soon it had appeared that he wouldn't _just_ be close to his daughter, for Arabella came into the picture.

Even though their mother had said no more arguing, Alex couldn't resist sticking out his tongue at his older sister. Arabella thought she knew _soo _much, just because she was eight. If he was eight than he'd probably know more than she did. Girls were so dumb sometimes, the boy thought of himself, still sticking out his tongue at his sister.

"Alexander." It was a sharp, warning word from Vincent that immediately made the four year old retract his tongue, and sit up straight, knowing that tone _anywhere_. "Apologize to your sister. You know that's not the way to act." Alex _did _know in his four year old mind not to act like he just did. It's just that when it came to girls, well, his father's words did not apply. _Especially_ dumb older sisters.

"I can't." Alex finally replied, his voice young and childish, though he took no notice of this. Only four years of age, the boy had (usually) two things on his mind. One, try to live with his dumb big sister, and two, cause as much mischief as he possibly could.

"And why not?" Maurice was having a field day with this. Of course, he recognized it from raising his daughter, and it was even more amusing to see how his grandchildren followed the steps of their Mama, just without knowing it.

"Because she says that-that the girl won't play with me when she wakes up again." Alex looked much put out at this, as he crossed his small arms over his chest and almost stuck out his tongue at his sister again.

"Wakes up again?" Vincent wondered in confusion, echoing his son's words. Belle bit her lip beside him, looking down at her lap so she didn't have to meet her husband's eyes. But Vincent knew that look all too well. "Belle…" He trailed out, his voice a warning as he wondered what he had not been told. Maurice's eyes flickered between the two parents uncertainly, before finally settling back on his grandchildren.

"Let's have a race, the three of us. Whoever can get to the library the fastest and choose what game they want to play." At Maurice's words both children's eyes lit up so fast. Turning both their heads in the direction of their parents for confirmation to go with their grandfather, they were rewarded by nods by both parents, though none looked at them.

"I'm going to beat _everyone_!" Ara called out, pushing back her chair so hard that it scraped against the floor. Jumping to her feet, she looked back behind her to make sure that her grandfather was coming, and so was her brother, before she grinned widely and started to run as fast as she could out of the dining room, Alex right on her heels and shouting out that she was a cheater. Maurice gave both parents an apologetic look, but swiftly made his exit out of the dining room too—albeit, not as fast as the children.

And then there were two.

"Alright. What happened?" Vincent let his hand slide through his hair, pushing it backwards as he looked at his wife. Belle bit her lip; not that she was afraid of her husband, but she had no clue how to start off this conversation.

"Well…Juliette woke up—" At this point, Belle was already cut off by a confused voice.

"Juliette?" Vincent asked, bewildered at who this 'Juliette' might be. His wife just smiled wanly at him, letting her fingers intertwine with his as she slowly explained.

"The girl. She said her name was Juliette." Belle's simple explanation came across, making Vincent give a nod as understanding lit up in his eyes.

"Alright, go on." Vincent prodded, knowing his wife was hiding something from him, but he couldn't just tell what. Belle resumed to bite her lip again as she tried to start over.

"Juliette woke up…and…well; you should have seen her Vincent. She was…_terrified_. She was flinching, and she was _begging_ for me not to hurt her. Then, one minute she's scared to death of me, and the next she's hunched over in pain, crying...she sort of told me, in not so many words, that she was hungry. So…I got her some food…she looked at the chicken soup like it was a Christmas feast, Vincent, she looked at it like it was the best thing in the entire world. And then…then she…she thought she had a debt. You know, like one to pay, for staying in the palace, and eating. For us being…kind, and taking her in. She…she was fully prepared…to 'work' it off…with as high a fever as she was running, and as weak as she was. Somehow or another I managed to convince her that she didn't have a debt, which I'm still not sure how that happened…and then…then…*sigh*…then I found out…she has no family…because she's an orphan. She 'left' the orphanage." Belle recounted what had happened, slowly emphasizing different words, as she let the thoughts start to organize themselves in her mind.

"That's…a lot to take in." Vincent said with a low whistle, mostly to himself. "Juliette." Vincent let his tongue roll over the name, no small amount of wondering in his voice. "She really thought she had a debt?" Vincent asked, softly though as he was…shocked at it. In his younger years, he would have agreed whole heartedly that the girl had a debt to pay…and even now he couldn't quite shake off that old feeling. But, he knew that it was wrong.

"Yes. She tried to get out of bed too, Vincent. She was barely awake, coughing, shivering, weak, scared, and with a high fever and a body so thin it could put a rail to shame. But she was still prepared to work to 'pay off' her 'debt'." Belle said softly, biting her lip as she thought of it. "She can't even be more than fourteen." The woman mused quietly to herself.

"And she's an orphan too." Vincent murmured, thinking this through, before sighing and shaking his head. "As soon as she's well enough, she'll have to go back. Did you get the name of the orphanage she's from?"

"No." Belle answered sullenly, before the extremity of her husband's words really played in her mind. Her brown eyes went wide as she stared at him in shock. "Go back? Vincent, she can't go back! I've heard rumors about those orphanages…and she's so, so _skinny_…" Here the woman trailed off again, biting her lower lip as she thought of it. No, she couldn't send the girl back to an orphanage. She just couldn't.

"Belle, there's nothing else we can do. When she's better she has to go back; the orphanage is her family." Noticing how his wife still wasn't on board with his words, Vincent gentled them considerably. "My darling, I don't want to send her back as much as you do, but you know it's the right thing to do. And it's not like we can just adopt her, or anything of that sort." Belle bit her lip, her fingers falling flat as she stopped moving them through her husband's. She looked down at the floor, which suddenly had a very interesting pattern, not willing to meet her husband's eyes and tell him. But Vincent guessed it.

"Oh no Belle, you weren't honestly thinking of adopting her? For god's sake, she's an orphaned-teenage-runaway who we found buried under the snow, half dead! We can barely handle the children we have, and you want another one, no less a teenager!" Exasperated, and his voice rising ever so slightly in anger, Vincent gave a hard laugh at that, not noticing how Belle's jaw suddenly tightened, and she held her head high.

"All I said was we couldn't send her back the orphanage." Belle's calm words rang out, but there was a hint of anger in them, as though she was telling her husband to back off now before he lost this battle.

"Then where do you propose we send her Belle?" Vincent snarled, his temper rising inside of him. "Because she's not going to stay _here_ for much longer. The minute she has no fever, she's going back to the orphanage. That's where she belongs. That's her _home_." Belle could feel her own anger rising at her husband's words, but she fought to stay calm and composed…at least until they were back in their chambers, and she could murder him there.

"For right now, she's still running a fever. We can talk about this when she doesn't have one." The brunette beauty's ice cold words and sharp tone were worse than Vincent's anger combined. "Excuse me." Yet another cool, with furious underlining tone came from Belle, as she pushed her chair back and went in search of her children, leaving Vincent all alone at the table.

"Oh no." Vincent groaned, knowing his temper had gotten the worst of him. Now he had a wife who was furious at him for reasons he couldn't understand. Couldn't Belle see that she was being ridiculous? He had _just_ figured out how to be a good father, a good King, _and_ a great husband…one more child could ruin that precarious balance! As it was he'd barely spoken to his children today, he still had paperwork to look over for his kingdom—he'd spent the day trying to find out if anyone had reported a missing child, and if so from where—_plus _Belle was angry at him. And all because of that girl. Couldn't Belle _see _that?

No, Vincent thought ruefully, his ego taking a blow at this; he guessed she wasn't seeing it, and he was going to have to…apologize. If he didn't work fast he may be sleeping a guest room tonight, because his wife most definitely wouldn't allow him to sleep in their bed. Sighing and shaking his head, the man pushed himself away from the table, and went to go try and find his wife.


	6. Promising Street Talk

The following day, in one of the hundreds of unused rooms in the castle, a feverish, bruised girl was in a deep slumber…but she was not alone in the room.

Belle's breath caught in her throat as she stared at the girl, sitting next to her on the side of the bed. The poor thing was restless in her sleep, her head moving back and forth on the pillow. And yet, even in her sleep the girl managed to tug at Belle's heart. What was it about her, the woman wondered to herself. Was it that the girl was so close to death, or was it the fact that she just seemed so different, so young, so innocent?

A cough overtook the girl's body then, as spurts of blood flew from her lips and stained the sheets. But the cough didn't recede as it kept coming, more phlegm filled by the second—but thankfully with no more blood.

"Here, sit up." Belle's quiet voice murmured, raising the girl up on the pillows. The girl's eyes opened slightly as she felt herself being raised up, but she didn't say a word because she could feel her cough receding. "Poor thing…" Belle's voice softly whispered, taking a cool cloth and pressing it against the girl's dirty face. The woman had tried her best to clean the girl up, but the task proved almost impossible without a bar of soap and a heavy wash cloth.

"S-stop." Juliette's voice muttered, apparently saying so because she did not like the way this strange woman was treating her.

"Hush." Belle retorted, but in a soft, motherly voice. She continued to press the cool cloth around the girl's face, trying to make sure that she was doing as much as possible to bring down this high fever. Juliette gave the woman what could have passed for a shrewd look, had she not been in such a weakened state. Coughing again, the girl realized that there was only one way that she'd be able to get this strange woman to stop with her nonsense of trying to help the orphan.

"I c-can leave…now…I'm…okay." The girl gulped then, swallowing down her painful hunger. Her head felt dizzy, and her eyes felt slightly out of focus…but she had to leave. She was an orphan, and no amount of babying would change that. Letting her tired eyes rest on the woman leaning over her, the strange woman who was taking care of her, the girl waited for her to reply.

"Alright Juliette, I'll humor you." Belle's final answer came out, calm and collected, though she was anything but. Her mind was in a complete whirl. Leave? Just this morning, the child had been hunched over in pain…and now she wanted to leave? Unheard of! But, Belle had to find out more about this girl, if only to prove to her husband that they had a responsibility to take care of her for longer than he wanted too. So, with that in mind, the woman gave in to the child, and spoke. "_If_ you were to leave—and I'm not saying you are at the moment—but _if _you were to leave, where would you go? Back to the orphanage?"

"N-Not the...orphanage." The young girl's voice quivered on the word 'orphanage', and that didn't go unnoticed by the Queen. But, she merely filed that away in her mind, and focused onto the girl.

"But if not the orphanage, then where—?" Belle wondered, her brows knit in concern for the girl. The poor girl still had a fever, she was weak, she was still so thin…she couldn't leave any time soon if she was to keep living!

"The…str-streets." The girl put simply, her skinny shoulders moving up and down in a shrug. She didn't understand why these this woman's eyes nearly popped out of her skull at her answer. Didn't they know that's where all orphans usually ended up?

"The _streets_?" Belle spluttered in disbelief. Managing, with some difficulty, to regain some composer, the woman tried her best to figure out the answer to the question that kept ringing in her mind. "Why not back to the orphanage?" The girl's eyes went wide and scared at the question, as she whimpered softly, shaking her head as best she could to show why she couldn't go back.

"M-Master Brys…'e'll ca-cane me… real bad….I can't…g-go back…I-I can't!" The girl's resolve was stronger now, but so was her fear. Hot tears were falling down her face at just the thought of having to go back to the orphanage. No! She'd sworn off on going back to that hell hole!

"Here, don't cry." Belle's soothing voice rang out, as she reached a hand to wipe away the girl's tears. The girl, who saw Belle's hand coming near her, flinched horribly and scrambled as far away as possible from the woman. Needless to say, the Queen was startled at this reaction, and because of it, a horrible thought arose in her head. Looking straight at the girl, she let a question slowly spill from her lips.

"What do you mean by…he'll cane you?" Belle wondered, a surge of pity for the girl reaching her heart for the umpteenth time today. Cane? Why would anyone cane anyone in this day and age? That practice had been abandoned long ago, hadn't it?

"Ple-Please… don't make m-me…go back. Pl-Please!" The girl clasped her hands together in a begging fashion as she looked up at Belle with the most fearful expression. No! She couldn't go back! Master Brys would cane her until there was no skin unmarred by bruises. She couldn't deal with anymore, she just couldn't.

"I-I'll leave…ri-right now…to the str-steets…if you don't m-make me…go-go back. I'-I'll be…" The girl trailed off then, biting her lower lip and looking down at the sheets of the bed. She wouldn't be happy being on the streets, so she couldn't say that. And she wouldn't be 'fine' either, so she couldn't say that. But it would be much better than the orphanage.

Actually, when she really thought about it, she was going to miss this place. Here she felt…the oddest sensations. Warmth. Gentleness. Compassion. Hope. And…and another sensation she couldn't quite place down. Something that she'd never experienced throughout her years…something that filled her heart with hope that not everyone was bad. Something…something…strange. Love, perhaps? No, it wasn't love. Love was for fools, love was for the rich. Love was not for orphans. And yet…

No. Stop thinking like that, the girl's mind scolded. Soon she'd be out of here; it was foolish to hold onto those feelings, those memories. She was only an orphan; she didn't deserve such memories. They only were there to taunt her, tell her this is what she could have, had someone ever thought to take her in as a servant. Shaking off the previous thoughts from her head, the girl let determination rise in her.

Clutching the bed sheets tightly she tried to raise herself up. She did make it shakily halfway up, before she gasped and fell back on the pillows. A weak cough escaped her lips at that, and the girl felt tiny slivers of blood start to form on her lips from how chapped they were. No matter, the girl thought, brushing off her pain as she tried to raise herself up again. This time it took an even less amount of time before she fell backwards on the pillow again, gasping for air like a fish out of water. But that didn't faze her, as she tried to sit up again. And again. And again. And—

"You're going to hurt yourself like that. Stop it." Belle's quiet, motherly tone said, ignoring the weak flinch the girl gave as she pressed her hand against the girl's bruised shoulder, and thereby pushing her back down. This had gone far enough. The woman had thought that maybe, just maybe, the girl had a sensible bone in her body, and that she'd realize that these insane thoughts of hers were, well, insane. She'd thought that perhaps the child would see her limit, and stop trying to push herself so much to sit up. But obviously, that wasn't happening. So now the Queen had to right what was wrong.

"Let me make myself more clear to you, child." Belle had soft voice, so she didn't scare the girl anymore than the child needed to be. "You are not…." Belle stopped abruptly, realizing that what she was about to say could hurt the girl in more ways than one. It was stupid to fill the teenager with the false hope she wouldn't go back to the orphanage, since Vincent refused to let the child stay any longer than she needed to.

"You are not going to the streets. You're going to stay here for as long as you need to...recover. I promise." Belle finally said, firmness in her tone that immediately made Juliette's eyes widen in shock. Surely this nice woman didn't know what she was saying, surely she didn't!

But Belle did know what she was saying. For as long as the girl was sick, weak, and injured, she would stay in the castle. After that…well, Belle couldn't make any promises, besides the one where she knew that the girl would not end up on the streets. Vincent wouldn't be too much of a happy camper when she told him about her promise, but he couldn't do anything about it. A promise was like giving your word in the way that it could not be broken; even an idiotic husband who was still sleeping in a guest room tonight knew that.

But heavens above, promise or not, the girl _needed_ to stay. Poor dear must not be in her right mind...willing to go out in that cold to live on the streets. What would she eat? Where would she sleep? And her fever! It would double and then kill the poor girl! And then...her lifeless body would just be on the street...the thought of it filled Belle with a sense of horror and almost tears.

"Bu-but..." Juliette tried to argue, but she was suddenly so tired that all she wanted to do was shut her eyes. Trying to stay awake long enough to convince this woman that she was able and ready to leave, the child managed the catch Belle's attention once again. Immediately coming out of her thoughts, the woman only had to look at the girl for just a moment before she knew exactly what the child needed.

"Just sleep." Belle murmured gently, moving the covers up so that they covered the girl's shivering body. Though her mouth opened in slight protest, Juliette found no words coming out of it. And Belle just watched with a slight grimace as the girl coughed one last time, before falling into a deep, fitful sleep.

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	7. Orphans and Books

Juliette slowly woke up to the sound of gentle humming, and as the girl let her eyes slowly open, she felt...she felt an odd sensation. It was as if someone was pressing a cool compress against her forehead once again. But...no, that was impossible. Hadn't she already told that woman from before that she didn't want her to do that to her? It was her problem; that meant it was her job to correct it. Slowly emitting a soft groan from her lips, the girl rolled over in...in...the strange, rich person bed, and let her arm weakly reach up and push away the hand that was pressing the cool compress against her face.

"St-stop it." Juliette managed to whisper, forcing her eyes to open all the way as she fuzzily made out the looming figure of...that strange woman who was nice to her. Odd, the girl thought as an off note in her mind. She'd thought by now the woman would have just left her to die. It's what most everyone would have done.

"Alright." Belle's voice said, musingly, before letting the cool compress rest on the girl's forehead. The child's fever had come down a quite a bit anyway, so the compress really wasn't needed any longer. She'd been in the guest room the poor girl was sleeping in since she'd finished her breakfast, and now, it was nearly afternoon.

"Here, why don't you sit up? Careful now..." Belle's worried, motherly voice rang out, helping (well, mostly lifting) the girl up, and letting her rest against the pillows. Noticing how easy it was to lift the girl, a brief look of shock falling across her face. Was the child really a testament to the old saying, 'skin and bones'? And the worst part was, the girl didn't even seem to notice...well, that was going to change.

"Would you like to eat something?" Belle's gentle voice made the girl's swollen eyes cast downwards, staring at the sheets. This was so...strange, for Juliette. All her life, she'd only known the cold, deteriorating floors as her bed back in the orphanage, not this. It was all so...weird.

"E-eat..." The girl's eyes had wondrous look about them at that, though the girl knew that she had to play it cool. If she let this woman know how much an actual meal meant to her...she'd never be allowed to be kept as a servant. "O-Okay." This was pretty nice, someone asking her if she wanted to eat. Of course, soon she'd be out on the streets, on her knees begging for a spare coin...but for now, a meal seemed like the best thing imaginable. Alright, so maybe it made her debt to these people huge if she ate again...but the girl had an idea in her mind.

While she was working off her debt, they'd have to keep her in this place, right? She wouldn't have a nice room like this obviously, but hell, even the basement of this place would probably be nice. And while she was working off her debt, they'd have to let her eat more, because she couldn't just die, and that would further add to her debt, ultimately letting the girl stay. It was a fool proof plan.

Belle watched with amusement as the girl hastily ate up the chicken soup, her eyes shifting every now and then to the left and right, as though she half expected someone to try and steal her food. And when finally, the girl pushed away the bowl from her, Belle was surprised to see that more than half of the chicken soup was gone. Much better than last time, the woman noted to herself.

For a few minutes, it was silent in the room. Juliette was wondering when she could slip back into her dress and start working again. She had a big debt to repay; she might as well get started on it. And Belle? Well, the Queen was staring at the girl, trying to see if she could make out the reason why this one child had such a big impact on her. Finally figuring out that it was close to impossible to figure out such a thing, the woman let a soft sigh escape her lips, before she looked back up at the girl with gentleness in her eyes.

"I brought you a book." Seeing the clearly confused look on the girl's face, the woman tried again. "You know, to read, so you don't get bored." Still seeing that confused look on the girl's face, Belle tried her one last tactic. She showed the girl the book...and was surprised at the results.

Instead of looking grateful, disdainful, hateful, or thankful, the girl just looked...petrified of the book. She moved her body as far away as she could from the thing, staring at it as though it was a rat. Her bottom lip trembled, and her eyes grew large and scared at just the sight of the pages. If Belle had been surprised before at the girl's strange behavior, than it was nothing compared to how the girl stared at the book.

"St-stop! Ge-get it…away! O-orphans…can't…have books. It's…against the…l-law. An-and then…Master Br-Brys…'ell have…to-to cane me. Again." Juliette's voice was low, confidential, and quite fearful. If Master Brys saw her with a book again, he'd cane her so bad that she'd be crippled for the rest of her life, because the law stated that orphans could not own books.

"Orphans can't have books because it's against the law? That's a lie!" Indignant was the only word that could describe Belle's tone at hearing what Juliette thought to be true.

"…bu-but Master Brys…he said…"

"Juliette, sweetie, he _lied_ to you. There's no such thing as a law like that; trust me, I would know." Belle's indignant tone from before softened considerably as she spoke to the girl now. She let herself make full eye contact with the girl, who in turn sucked in a breath…and shook her head slowly.

"The-then…how come…Master Brys…ca-caned me when…I had…a-a book?" Juliette asked quietly, puzzlement in her tone. She wanted to believe this woman, truly she did, but….it seemed so farfetched. After all, Master Brys wouldn't have caned her for just holding a book before if it wasn't against the law…would he? Children _had_ been caned for less offenses before, Juliette mused to herself.

"Because…because he's a very cruel man." Belle said softly, her eyes burning with the tears she wouldn't cry in front of the girl. She didn't even want to imagine the girl being beaten for having a book. She treasured books so deeply, and she was fond of the little orphan girl too. But for the child to be caned for such a petty thing, and then brainwashed into believing that it was the proper punishment because that was the law…Belle shuddered even thinking about it.

Juliette blinked, coughing slightly as she tilted her head to the side in thought. She didn't know why, but she believed Belle completely. There was something about the woman, her kindness maybe, or the way she looked over at her that just made Juliette know that no such law existed. And truth be told…she wasn't even all that surprised. She'd always believed that such a law had been a bit sketchy to believe, but had gone along with it anyway as to not upset Master Brys anymore. But the real problem here wasn't that such a law existed, no, the problem was…well, everything.

Her eyes were swollen, her body felt like it was attached to a hundred pound weight, and she felt all around miserable. Still, she knew that she was being spoiled here. Sleeping in a room all to herself, eating as much as she pleased, having someone try and bring down her fever with a cold compress...it was as if this place was making her soft! Well, Juliette wasn't soft! She wasn't going to be babied any longer. She had a debt to repay, and she knew she had a way to start paying it off, some way or another.

"I-I…have a… whole fra-franc…in my…dre-dress sleeve. It's…it's mine…bu-but…I'll gi-give it to you…for my debt." Juliette's earnest, weak voice carried to Belle's ears, startling the woman who'd been deep in thought.

"You must be mistaken. There wasn't any money in your dress." Belle's voice said, letting a hand rest on the girl's wrist in a motherly fashion for a moment. The girl ripped her hand away from Belle, unused to such motions, except of course when she was being beaten.

"A-at all?" Juliette managed to choke out in shock now, her features scared beyond belief. But...that was impossible! She'd put the franc in her dress sleeve so that it would be safe from the elements. How could it not be in there?

"At all." Belle repeated, noticing how the girl's features seemed...to just slump at that. The hopeful gleam in her eyes, the childlike quality she possessed...it was all gone. She looked like a puppy that'd been kicked one too many times.

"O-oh." Juliette's bottom lip started trembling, and before the girl could stop it, tears had sprung to her eyes and were falling down her face. How could she have been so stupid? She should have known falling asleep in the snow would surely make her an easy target for pick pocketers. It wasn't that she was crying over the fact that she had nothing, far from it actually, since she was used to having nothing in the world. She was crying because now, for sure, she couldn't start to pay off her debt, and if she couldn't start to pay it off, this woman wouldn't think she was serious about it, and if she didn't think she was serious, she'd be just another problem for her, and more than anything would Juliette hate for this kind woman to think she was a problem.

"Oh, don't cry." Belle tried her best to soothe the girl, but the child wouldn't let her anywhere near her. "Be thankful that it was only money, and not your life that you lost out there in the snow child." Her words were having no affect on the girl, the woman realized, biting her lip before trying one last time to soothe the girl. "Listen very closely to me, alright dear? You have no debt. Absolutely, positively, undeniably, _none_. Does that make everything clearer?" There was a firm, rawness like quality to the edge of Belle's voice, making the girl immediately sniffle, and wipe away her tears with the too large nightgown sleeve.

"Yessum." The girl managed to mutter out, staring down exhaustedly at the comfy sheets of this bed. After a minute of silence, Juliette's curiosity won her over, and she finally looked back up at Belle. "Ma'am?" The girl asked in a quiet, still weak voice, but there was that little glimmer of hope behind her words that caught Belle's attention.

"Yes?" Belle prodded, taking the cool compress again and pressing it against the girl's face. The girl seemed ready to argue about this, but one look from Belle immediately shut her up about that. Still, the girl was hesitant to ask this question, because it could only end up in two ways...and neither of them seemed very nice right now.

"Ca-can…I-I see the pic-pictures…in-in the book?" It was a leap of faith for the girl, who immediately after cringed, waiting for the blows and yells to start. But...they never came. Instead, she felt the book being placed gently in her calloused, rough hands. Opening one eye warily, the girl looked up to make sure that she wouldn't be beaten, before flipping through the book pages wildly...and then shutting the book and handing it back to the Queen with a downhearted expression. "The-there's…no…pi-pictures."

"Sometimes using your imagination is the best picture there is." Belle said gently, a smile lifting up the corners of her mouth at that. "I'll leave this here for you, just in case you want to read it later." A knowing smile reached the corners of Belle's mouth at that, as she knew all children were curious and this child was not the exception.

"Do-don't...matter. I-I can't…read…no-none." Juliette's voice sounded more like the tone you'd use to greet someone than a girl who'd never read a thing in her life. But, hey, that was the life of an orphan. You want to eat at the orphanage? Sure, no problem. You just can't make the Master mad…and good luck with that one.

"You mean...you never learned?" This was the second time Belle had used that phrase, and for the second time in her life, she was astonished after uttering it. Juliette may be poor, and an orphan, but that didn't mean that she should be deprived of the only thing that could possibly lift her spirits up in the world.

"N-No." Juliette answered honestly, eyeing the book in Belle's hand. Master Brys wasn't here...and yet, the girl still had a paranoid suspicion that the minute she tried to hold that book again, he'd poke his head through the door and cane her till his arm got sore.

"Well...would you like to? I could teach you..." A look of wonder unfolded before the girl's eyes at that, as though Belle had just told her that she was in the presence of the Queen herself. Okay, so maybe, technically the girl _was_ in the presence of the Queen, who was Belle...but, the girl was petrified enough about being in front of just a normal person...imagine what would happen if she learned that Belle was the Queen! No, it was better to keep the girl in the dark about that.

"Y-you…cou-could?" The hopeful gleam and childish wonder was back in the girl's eyes, Belle noted with a soft laugh to herself. But how could the girl not be in wonder? The only person she'd ever known who could read was Master Brys, and he'd die before teaching one of the orphans to read.

"Of course." Belle said with another laugh, tucking a loose dark brown curl behind the girl's ear. The girl blinked in surprise at the motherly gesture. Where had that come from? And no beating with it? What kind of wonderful place _was_ this? "But I think you should sleep first. You look a little pale." Belle's genuinely concerned voice said gently, letting her fingers brush against the back of the girl's face. Still a hot fever raged through the girl's body. And what was worse was that the girl seemed to take no notice of it. Poor thing.

"Y-yes…ma'am." Juliette managed to say, in between coughs and a half asleep state that she was starting to fall into. Belle could only make a wry smile lift up the corners of her mouth at that, before shaking her head at the girl.

"Just call me Belle dear." Had Juliette not been so exhausted, or if she'd been raised in a typical home, her ears would have perked up at the name Belle and she would have put two and two together. But she _was_ exhausted. And she _hadn't_ been raised in a typical home. So therefore, to her, Belle was just another name.

"O-okay." The girl whispered, before falling fast into a deep sleep.

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	8. Learning to Read, and Wayward Thoughts

"...mi-mixed with horror to-to the...thunder str-stri-stri—"

"Thunder stricken." Belle prodded gently, pronouncing out the difficult word out for the girl. Juliette looked up once at Belle, before hurrying back down to her slow, but improving reading.

"Thunder stricken man of sci-sci-en-en..."

"Science." Belle prodded again, slowly so that Juliette could understand the seemingly difficult word. For a moment, the girl blinked and looked up at Belle, before looking back down at the book, biting her lip hard in concentration, and trying to keep going.

"Science...and is this the up-upshot of your...ex-ex—" Just about when Belle was to break in again, and prod the girl with the word, the girl looked up, pleading in her eyes. "Don't tell me, I know it!" There was such a childish quality about her voice that Belle had no choice but to do as the girl said, as she watched the child struggle and try to figure out her word.

"Ex-ex...peer...rim...rim...ment! Experiment." Juliette said loudly and proudly, as she looked up with a bright expression. "I did it!" The girl said with pride in her tone that she had accomplished something which had seemed like an impossible feat only a few days before.

"Good job dear." Belle said with a small laugh at the girl's beaming expression. The girl's fever had broken at least two weeks ago, but still too weak and bruised; the child was on mandatory bed rest—at least, for now. Soon, very soon, Belle knew she would have to allow the girl to leave the room she was staying in, in the castle, because the child's strength was coming back to her. And soon, Belle knew that the girl would be leaving for good to...to...nowhere. The thought filled the Queen up with guilt, but she quickly pushed it aside, telling herself that she'd deal with it when the time came.

"I knew you could do it." Belle hadn't doubted for one moment that the girl couldn't do it. The child's mind was like a sponge; she soaked everything up with a voracious interest. Since she had no education, the girl was constantly asking questions about everything, and you could see that happiness she had in her eyes when the girl learned something new.

"Only 'cuz you're a good teacher." The girl said shyly back, her face blushing lightly at telling an adult this. Her stuttering had dropped, for the most part, when she'd finally gotten used to be around Belle, and when she could actually sit up, on her own too!

"And you're an excellent student." Belle replied with a smile, tucking a strand of the girl's hair behind her ear. There was only a slight, reflexive flinch from the girl when her hand went forward, but other than that the child seemed to be fine with it. She had gotten used to Belle's gentleness, or how the woman treated her with...with...that emotion that Juliette refused to acknowledge. "But, even the best need to sleep. Get some rest dear; we all know you need it." A small cough escaping the girl's lips seemed to prove Belle's motherly point, as the woman took the sheets and started to tuck the girl into them.

"B-Belle?" Juliette asked, her head cocked to the side on the pillow in question. It'd been at least a good three weeks since the girl had come here, to this wonderful place...she had to say, living the good life was...well, _good_. It was better than her imagination could have ever concocted...no beatings, a stomach that didn't yearn for food, people who looked after her (if you included Mrs. Potts and Babette, who would fill in for Belle when the Queen was busy). But...it wasn't going to last for much longer, considering how the girl was getting better, and stronger by the day.

"What honey?" Belle wondered gently, tucking the book underneath her arm. She was impressed to say the least with this orphan girl, who'd learned to read in just two weeks.

"Tomorrow..." Juliette hesitated, something she just did automatically. "Tomorrow...since I'm all better 'an stuff...can I...ya know...get ou-out of this room, please?" Juliette winced as she realized how weak her words were. Good job, she sarcastically chastised herself.

Belle gave a sigh. She knew this would be coming sooner or later. She'd been trying to postpone it for as long as possible though. She knew once she let the girl have freedom to roam around the castle, the girl would be halfway to leaving, because now she was strong enough to walk around. As much as Belle wanted to keep the girl...she knew her husband had a point.

They had three underage children of their own; to adopt a fourth, no less a teenager, would be like suicide. She couldn't just keep the girl around the castle for no apparent reason, without adopting her. And she couldn't make the girl work _in_ the castle...because she was still a child. Still, she couldn't send the girl on her way to...to...well, legally she'd have to send the girl back to the orphanage...but after the stories Juliette had told Belle innocently about that place...the woman shuddered to think of sending the sweet girl back there. So the girl would end up on the streets, begging for a spare coin, with only rags to cover her in the middle of a freezing winter. And that was the worst thought of them all.

"We'll...see about that, alright dear?" It was a statement most mother's used when they couldn't seem to say yes, but they also couldn't say no. It was an in-between, a 'what if' a 'maybe'.

"Okay." Juliette said, forcing her face not to look so...downhearted at the thought that she wouldn't be able to leave this room soon. Still, she shouldn't complain. She was actually in a room, her own room, in a bed, with warm sheets tucked around her.

"I...sleep well." Belle finally said, watching with a small grimace to herself as the girl floated off to dreamland. She needed to talk to her husband about this; that was for sure. Maybe he could put her mind at ease...hopefully.

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**The story is called 'Rapuccini's Garden' by Nathaniel Hawthorne, in case you were wondering.** :) **REVIEW!**


	9. Too Vain, or Too Insensitive

Belle's forehead creased with worry as she leaned closer to her reflection in the vanity mirror. It wasn't that she was being vain, no, far from it. It was just...she was trying to figure out what she saw in that poor little orphan girl, that reminded her so much of herself.

Could it be that the girl had no mother, as Belle herself had growing up? No...that didn't seem right. Perhaps it was that the girl was scared of everything? No...Belle had always considered her childhood to be a bit on the reckless and adventurous side. Maybe it was that the girl was trying to adjust to a new environment? That seemed likely...but inwardly Belle knew that that wasn't the case. So then what—

"And _I'm_ the vain one?" A voice mused beside's Belle's ear, startling the woman as she jerked suddenly, causing the owner of the voice to laugh good naturedly. Belle turned around in her vanity chair, brows raised at her husband, as her lips were pursed out, trying hard not to giggle like a lovesick-school-girl.

"I'm not vain." Belle adamantly said, before softening her tone as she turned back to the mirror. "I was just...thinking." Vincent quirked an eyebrow at that, wondering what his wife could 'just be thinking' about. He let his hands rest on her shoulders, as the woman barely noticed the loving gesture, too deep in thought.

"Belle?" Vincent asked with a hint of worry in his tone that his wife was in an entirely new planet right now. Belle jerked again at her husband's words, coming out of her reverie suddenly as she looked back up at him.

"Sorry." She flushed a light shade of pink, trying to shake off thoughts about Juliette from her mind. She had her own children to think about. Juliette was just...just...just an orphan girl. No more, no less. Still, there was something rather endearing about how rough around the edges she was...wait. Where had _that_ thought come from?

"If I could read your mind," Vincent mused, "I think we'd all sleep a little better at night. But I can't, unfortunately, do that. So please, can you tell me what you're thinking before I start to go insane?" Vincent's pleading voice asked, trying to understand his wife. Belle gave a soft sigh, standing up and away from her vanity as she turned to face her husband.

"I'm just...well...it's like..." Belle, who was never one to be at loss for words, suddenly found herself in just that predicament. Vincent raised a brow, as if wondering where all this was going. Belle gave a frustrated, heavy sigh.

"Juliette is...well, the girl is getting stronger, and she wants to be able to walk around the castle, or at least, get out of that room. But...if she does...than that will mean that...she's strong enough to...leave. And after what she's told me about the orphanage, well, I mean, I can't just allow her to go back there, but at the same time, where could I send her?" The last part was more of a musing on Belle's part, but other than that she tried—in the best way possible—to tell her husband what was troubling her.

For a few moments, Vincent could only stare at his wife, utterly speechless. Well, at least she'd gotten rid of the idea of adopting that girl, but on the other hand, now she was _debating_ whether to send Juliette back to the orphanage or not. Alright, so Vincent had heard the stories Belle had repeated to him about what the girl had innocently said...well, he didn't want to send the orphan back to the orphanage...but what could he honestly do?

The girl _belonged_ in an orphanage; she was too young to work, and had no family to speak of. And Vincent sure as hell wasn't adopting a runaway orphan/teenage girl because...there was something strange about that girl! She never complained about her life, she took things as they were, and she...she was just _**too**_ unselfish! It was unnerving to be by someone who would willingly go out to the streets and beg—with a fever and a weak and bruised body—just because she felt like not being babied. Perhaps she wasn't the enchantress (or was she...?), but she was definitely hiding something.

"Belle, we have no choice but to send her back." Vincent said, making his words as gentle as possible, and noticing immediately how his wife's face fell. Of course Belle had realized this was the legal thing to do...but it wasn't the _right_ thing, at least, not to the woman. "Maybe...maybe she can go to a different orphanage? That would easily get rid of the problem." Unintentionally, Vincent's words made Belle suddenly angry, as she jerked out of his intimate embrace.

"_Problem_?" Belle clarified, clenching her teeth in anger. "She's not a 'problem' Vincent. And we can't just 'get rid' of her as though she's nothing more than something broken. Plus, what would sending her to a different orphanage accomplish? Her future would still be the same, and I'm almost positive that where she's from isn't the only orphanage that abuses children. Solving the problem indeed." Belle gave a hard laugh at that, her eyes suddenly cold to her husband who finally realized his mistake. He could have slapped himself. So much for thinking before speaking.

"Belle you're taking my words out of context." Vincent snarled, his own anger rising up as he felt his wife's raise a few notches. Belle just gave another hard laugh, staring into the blue eyes of her husband with her brown ones with so much energy.

"And _you're _being insensitive towards a sweet little girl." Belle fired back, her eyes almost daring her husband to try and challenge her. Though shorter than her beloved considerably, what Belle lacked in size she made up for in attitude.

"Arabella is a 'sweet little girl'. Gemma is a 'sweet little girl'. But that child, Juliette? She's an orphan, which means, in no way at all is she 'sweet' nor is she a 'little girl'." Vincent's voice rose frustrated beyond belief. How could a simple conversation end with a battle, he wondered briefly.

"Well _I _beg to differ." Belle's voice also rose, though it wasn't a yell. "Just because fate dealt her a cruel card by taking away her parents, doesn't mean that has to rule her entire life Vincent. I would think _you_, of all people, would understand that." Belle's voice lowered considerably for her last sentence, so it came out as a calm sort of anger. Vincent stood, blinking, open jawed in shock at what his wife had just said. He tried to make words come from his mouth, but none would. For just a moment, Belle let her eyes soften, and do the talking to her husband...before she gave a soft sigh, and shook her head.

While Vincent was still standing in the middle of their bedchamber, thinking all this through, Belle slipped into bed and blew out the candle that was the only source of light in the room. And as she drifted off to dreamland, she and her husband's thoughts matched up almost perfectly, as they were both thinking of—who else—but that orphan girl.

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**Alright, so there's been alot of hate on Vincent, so I just want to clear it up. Imagine that all your life, you've been told the sky is red. That's all you believe in, and that's all you know. Now, imagine that someone corrects you years later and says, the sky is in fact blue. You would have a hard time changing your views, wouldn't you? Even after years and years? Well, that's what's going on with Vincent. Does that clear anything up, or does it make everything more confusing? REVIEW!**


	10. Limp Excuses

Belle had made excuses for as long as she possibly could. All week, when the girl had asked if perhaps, she could get up and walk around a little, the woman had been quick to make a phony excuse. You still have a cough; you look too pale; you still feel warm; and so many more. Never once did the girl argue back, or complain about the unfairness of the response; she took the answer in quietly, and didn't say another word about it. Finally though, it became apparent that the girl couldn't be kept in bed any longer, and Belle had been forced to let the girl get up.

"Careful." Belle warned in a motherly, worried tone, extending a hand to steady the orphaned girl. Juliette, unused to putting weight on her feet after about a month swayed slightly, almost light headed from everything. Putting out her own arms, the girl, with Belle's help, finally managed to stand still. Her bony knees stuck out plainly through the nightgown, while the collar of the dress kept slipping down the girl's shoulder because of how thin the girl was.

"'S okay. I'm okay. Let go." Juliette's quiet voice said, shaking off Belle's hand from her arm. So finally; she could stand. How long until she'd be sent away, the girl wondered? A day or two more? Or even, tonight?

"Alright." Belle was worried still, but she allowed her hand to be shaken off, as she grimaced slightly and looked up at the girl, head to toe. After a month of eating, resting, and regaining her strength...the girl was still pitifully skinny, the dark circles under her eyes weren't completely gone, and she was resting most of her weight on her left leg. Even after a month of recuperating, it couldn't make up for a lifetime of mistreatment. Some of the worse bruises still littered her skin, healing slowly, but not fast enough for Belle.

Juliette rested some of her weight on her right leg, wincing slightly at the pain, before she took a step forward with her left, and thereby dragged her right leg behind her. After the spots cleared from the girl's green eyes, and she could see the far wall better, the girl took another step forward, again dragging her right leg behind her.

"Oh my goodness." Belle finally gasped, staring at the girl in horror. "Y-your leg!" Juliette turned around slowly, blinking in confusion as her head tilted slightly to the side, wondering what Belle was talking about. "H-How...I m-mean...what happened to your leg?" The woman finally managed to choke out the words, as she stared at the girl in outright alarm. Juliette's confused features slowly became understanding, as she looked down at the floor, and shook her head.

"M-Master Bry's don't like it when you don't m-make shoes fast enough." Juliette mumbled quietly, her weight almost fully pressed on her left leg. The girl kept her gaze downwards, unable to lift her head up because of her shame. She'd be forced to limp like this the rest of her life, the girl knew. And had there ever been the slightest chance that someone would want to take her in as a servant—or even, shockingly enough, adopt her—they wouldn't now, because of her leg.

"What do you mean...'make shoes'?" Belle asked in as kind a voice she could muster under the circumstances. Her anger was starting to boil, and when she was angry...oh, would everyone know it. Again with that damned Master Bry's the girl was so terrified of. Really, Belle was almost to the point where she was going to kill the man herself for inflicting so much pain and torture on a poor, sweet little girl like Juliette.

"I-I didn't say nothing! Please, I didn't say nothing!" Juliette begged, her tone implying for Belle to drop the subject. The girl was suddenly looking up at Belle, her green eyes stunned at the secret she had just said aloud. Stupid, her mind chastised. She was under strict orders from the Master never to utter a word about what she and the other orphans did. Now he was going to find her, and he was going to really go through with his death threat. The thought of it terrified the girl to the point where she was shaking in fear.

"Don't be scared honey; I won't tell a soul." Belle's soothing voice said, making the girl relax slightly, though she was still on guard and wary. Belle was nice to her...but anyone who was a stranger could not be trusted. Juliette had learned that the hard way throughout her short life.

"Do you want to take a hot bath, and walk around the castl—er, I mean, house—for a little bit, or go back to bed?" Belle's voice could be described as gentle, though underneath it there was an immense curiosity. She wanted to know why the girl had practically begged her to forget what she had said. She wanted to know what 'make shoes' had to do with all of this. But...Juliette still didn't trust her enough. Oddly enough, the thought of that made the woman feel...strangely hurt.

"Bath?" The freckled girl innocently asked, thankful for the subject change. She was a bit lightheaded still from getting up and out of bed, but she was young. She'd recover soon enough and then...and then what? Belle had said she wasn't going to the streets, or back to any orphanage...but the woman also hadn't said the girl could stay here after she wasn't bedridden. So what was going to happen to her?

A smile lifted up on the corners of the Queen's lips, though it seemed a bit forced. She was worried beyond compare for Juliette's sake. She still hadn't managed to convince Vincent to let the child stay in the castle...and she knew the moment her husband found out that the girl was walking about; he'd ship her off back to that orphanage.

And, the worst part out of all of this, she couldn't figure out why her husband wouldn't listen to her and let the girl stay. Once upon a time, an old beggar woman had come to the castle doorstep, and after she was turned away by Vincent, she turned him into a beast. So when the same thing happens again, but this time with a child, why wouldn't her husband just...be nicer? Belle knew he was no longer a beast on the inside; she'd helped him break the first spell to prove that. So then why wasn't he being the man that she knew he was; the _improved_ Prince?

As soon as those thoughts had come, they vanished from Belle's mind as she focused on not dealing with them right this minute. She didn't need to start speaking to herself aloud (as she had a habit of doing when she was thinking too hard) and scare the poor girl. The girl...Belle's brown eyes looked over Juliette's still too-thin/beaten body, and gave a silent sigh. To make matters worse, the orphan was looking at her with a clearly confused expression, as though she hadn't a clue what a bath was.

"Here; follow me dear. The bathroom is just right across the hall." Belle finally said aloud to the orphan, who in turn gave her a still puzzled expression. But, not wanting to disobey and adult (though she highly doubted Belle would hit her), she let herself be gently pushed from behind across the hall, and into another room. But, not before the girl could catch sight of how just the hallway looked like.


	11. A Selfish Book Room

Huge. That was the first word that entered the girl's mind as she looked down the hallway for a moment and couldn't even see the end. Her bare feet (well, one of them anyway) walked across the soft, expensive carpet, in wonder as to how this could be. Curtains were drawn aside from the windows that were about three times the size of the girl herself. Vases and portraits lined the sides of the hallways, showing off how expensive this place really was. It was like...like what the royal castle would look like, the girl's mind put together. No, this place was _better_ than what the royal castle might ever look like.

"I'll give you some privacy while you take a bath, alright?" Belle said with amusement in her tone, noticing how the girl was staring about the bathroom like it was the grandest thing in the world. At least Belle knew now, sort of, how the girl reminded her like herself. When she'd first come to the castle...well, she'd had that same unbelieving look on her features as well. After nine years of living within the royal castle though, Belle had come to get used to her surroundings...it gave her a certain sense of nostalgia to see the girl stare at everything like in wonder.

"Okay." Juliette breathed, staring at the bathroom in wonder. Bath. Room. There was an entire room just dedicated to a tub of soapy water, and a desk that had a mirror attached to it. Not to mention a rack holding _clean_ towels, a cabinet like thing that was pretty big in itself...the girl could go on and on, describing how this one room looked. Back at the orphanage they hadn't had tubs. If you wanted to keep clean, you get some puddle water and splash it across your face, or if it rained, you ran outside into it. There was no soap. There were no bubbles. It was more of a want than anything.

The door shut softly, and the girl turn her head sharply to the sound, immediately stiffening as a reflex reaction. When she realized everything was fine, she let out a breath of relief she didn't know she'd been holding in. Warily looking at the door, the girl then looked back down at the nightgown she was wearing, and gingerly stepped out of it and into the tub.

After at least thirty minutes of thorough soaking and scrubbing, the girl finally thought herself clean enough. Drying herself slowly and silently with a towel, and then slipping into the dress that had been left considerately (and hopefully) for her on the vanity table, immediately noticing how the dress was almost too big for her. But she wasn't complaining. The girl ran her fingers through her dark brown, almost black curls, ignoring the brush and the mirror as she knew she had no need for them. For a moment, the girl studied the shoes that had been left out for her.

As wonderful as it was to have two shoes...the girl knew she would only be able to wear one. Her right foot had such a bad limp that if she wore such a nice shoe...well, it would be destroyed by the end of the day. No, the she couldn't do that. The girl's eyes shifted left to right for a moment, before giving a soft sigh of relief as she saw her old, too-big-boot kind of hidden behind the vanity. The girl made a note in her mind to thank whoever had left her old boot and a nice dress out for her, and tell them that next time, they_ really_ shouldn't go through any trouble just because of her.

Finally, when the girl thought she looked good enough (or good enough as she'd ever be), she carefully straightened up the bathroom, making it neat once again, before limping out the door.

The first sight she was met with was those same three children whom she'd seen on more than one occasion, when they managed to sneak into her room. From listening to them before, the girl had come to conclude that the blue eyed girl was the leader at eight years, with the name of Ara, the black haired girl was a year or so younger and was Gemma, and the little boy was only about four years of age, his name being Alex. The minute the children, who were slumped against the wall, saw the girl though, they immediately brightened up.

"Juliette!" Alex was the first to cry out. "Mama said that we couldn't go in 'cause you were-you was your bath time, but now that you're not we're gonna play!"

"Alex." Arabella rolled her eyes, showing signs already of a developing dry humor. "We're not going to go _play_. We're gonna show her _everything_." Arabella said, as Juliette blinked, wondering if she had an opinion or if she was just going to be spoken for.

"Where should we go first?" Gemma asked, putting a finger to her chin. Stealing a look up at the older girl in front of her. The dress she was wearing kept slipping off of one shoulder, exposing a nasty looking bruise.

"The nursery! The nursery!" Alex chimed in, chipper as a clam at getting his voice in. The nursery (well, _his_ nursery) wasn't too far away from where the children were now, and on the plus side, he'd be able to show Juliette all his toys.

"The nursery is for _babies_." Arabella said snidely to her younger brother, who's face fell at just the thought of it.

"How about the _bibliothèque_, er, library?" Gemma chimed in hopefully, wondering if her idea would be shot down by her friend and hoping to goodness that it wasn't. She liked being friends with Ara, even if the girl was really bossy.

"Nuh-uh." Arabella swatted the idea of the library away, not noticing how Gemma's face fell. Juliette warily watched this, entirely silent as usual. She'd never been an outspoken child; actually, she liked to keep to herself. Suddenly, Arabella snapped her fingers, looking up happily. "I know where! We'll go to the library!" The little girl cried out loud, figuring out a place.

"But I just…_je viens de_...said that." Gemma said, blinking in confusion. The princess didn't seem to hear her though, because she immediately grabbed Juliette's hand, and started to lead the limping girl towards the library. Though the children noticed the girl's horrible limping, they said not a word about it. Belle had pre-warned them all with the story of 'the girl fell and hurt her leg a long time ago', and to not speak a word about it, upon penalty of a time-out. Needless to say, the children were keeping silent.

"See? This is the library! It's got lots and lots and lots of books to read! Mama even says she hasn't read all of them!" Alex said; chipper as he followed behind his sister and her best friend into the library. Juliette stared all around her at the gigantic room, her jaw nearly dropping to the floor.

When she been taken by the hand through the many different hallways and corridors, and seen many of the most likely servants in this place, the girl had come to the conclusion that the house she must be in must be at least twice the size of the orphanage. But that wasn't true, the girl realized now. Oh no. Just one _room_ was twice the size of the orphanage. It was a grand room, with shelves upon shelves of books, and windows, furniture, and so much more…but the only impact it made on the orphan girl was just one word. Really?

This place…these people were so spoiled. They kept just one room full of books, _**one**_ _**room**_. More than a hundred orphans could fit into this room to have a place to sleep, and more than a hundred with probable room to spare. Lots of room. Suddenly, Juliette was…angry. Hot tears burned her eyes as she realized one fact.

These people…didn't they know how bad it was out there? Didn't they know that while they had fancy book _rooms_, orphans were being squashed together to sleep in an uncomfortable, dirty, tiny, horribly bad _room_? How could they be so selfish? These fancy people lived in their nice homes, had nice hair, and nice clothes, while orphans had barely enough room to breathe, let alone sleep, their hair was always infested with lice, and their clothes were rags? Didn't they know how bad it was for them?

"Why are you crying?" Gemma asked, titling her black head of hair to the side in wonderment. Older kids didn't cry…well, 'cept Chip that one time when he broke his arm, but other than that…

"I-I'm…I've gotta…" Juliette limped as fast as she could out of that damned book room, wiping at her tears and trying to keep it all together. By the time the children realized that she was leaving them, and they ran after her, the girl was gone, somewhere deep within the castle now.

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**REVIEW!**


	12. The Orphan Inventor

Juliette limped around this fancy home, hurting and marveling in all its splendor. A mental calculator told her how much such simple things that these people took no notice of would be worth out in the street. That glass vase, those tapestries, that small table; hell, even the rose inside that vase would be worth something. A cot to sleep on, perhaps? Or better, maybe money for food?

The orphan shook her head, her bottom lip quivering as she realized one family's 'decorations' could feed her, plus thirty others for more than a year. It was official; to be an orphan, you had officially hit rock bottom.

She kept her head down and tried to keep limping to…to…to…where? Where could she possibly go? She had no idea how big this place was; and the people that walked around and gave her curious, yet odd looks didn't seem to be too helpful. Giving a hurt, small sigh, the girl kept limping in the straight direction she was headed. She hardly realized that the direction she was taking, was leading her to a secluded stairwell, which seemed to go up, and up, and up, for all of eternity.

Climbing the steps slowly to let her thoughts organize themselves, the girl finally surprised herself when she came upon a door. Behind it, she could hear muttered oaths, and a loud explosion. Curious, and yet wary at the possible danger, the girl slowly opened the door, and moved herself so that she was inside.

The first thing the girl noticed about the place was that it reminded her of the orphanage. It was chilly from its high height, and the stone walls seemed so desolate, so depressing that the phrase "abandon all hope, ye who enter" literally must have meant this place. Then the girl noticed the smoke.

Since this place probably hadn't been cleaned in years—another remarkable similarity to the orphanage—all the dust and dirt had combined with the explosion to create a thick, gray cloud of smoke. The girl tried to hold in all her coughing—and sneezing for that matter—though her eyes burned from the smoke. Managing to swat some of it away with her hand, the girl was met with an odd sight.

"Dog gone it!" A short, heavy set man yelled, kicking…kicking at something. The girl wasn't quite sure what it was, besides scraps of lumber, metal, and other strange objects. "I was sure I had it!" The man muttered to himself, pulling at his white hair and quickly opening a window to release some of the smoke in the room. He rubbed at his mustache underneath his nose, 'hmphing' as he stood back and stared venomously at the strange, big thing.

"A-A-ACHOO!" Juliette finally couldn't in any longer, and she sneezed loudly in the room. Immediately after, the smoke finally made it's way to her lungs, and she started to cough horribly, muffling them into her arm. Her eyes burned, but whether it was from the smoke, or her own tears, she wasn't quite sure.

The man's head turned in her direction suddenly, upon hearing her muffled coughs and loud sneeze. Immediately, his expression of frustration and slight anger, turned into one of surprise.

"Who's there?" Maurice said, blinking once or twice as the smoke cleared and he got a better view of the girl that had sneezed. It was probably Arabella, or Alexander, coming up to say hello or help their grandfather with his machine (help in the sense that they passed him tools). But when the smoke started to clear, and his vision started to return…he was met with an odd sight.

There was a girl, early in her teen years, who stood near the doorway. She looked petrified as she finished coughing, and stared up at him with terror. The dress she was wearing looked old, and faded, but still useful. It hung on her too thin frame like a flag caught in the wind. She had what appeared to be thick dark brown curls, which seemed rather uncontrollable. An array of freckles littered her nose and cheeks, but what was really amazing was the big, green eyes the girl had...yes, Maurice now realized who this child was. Belle and the children had been talking about her for over a month now.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-to come he-here. I'll go!" Juliette stuttered out quickly, clutching at her arms in fear. She'd just come in here, as though she owned this amazing place. She should have _known_ better than to try and explore this place a little; she should have known it would lead her to trouble. Turning as fast as she could, the girl put her hand to the doorknob, starting to turn it quickly…but a voice stopped her from behind.

"Wait!" Maurice called, stopping the girl in her tracks. She slowly, terrified, turned around to see him, wincing already as she waited for the blows to start. But…they didn't. Instead, she was met with kind brown eyes, and an even kinder smile towards her.

"You're Juliette, aren't you?" Maurice asked gently, making sure not to make sudden movements so that the girl wasn't spooked like a wild animal. Slowly, the girl nodded the fear in her eyes still evident. But Maurice only smiled at the girl. "I'm Maurice." He introduced himself, his words still gentle and nice towards the girl who nodded again as though she understood. Her fingers dropped from the doorknob, as she warily watched the man, as though she didn't see him as a threat to her.

"You know, I'm an inventor." Maurice said, as though filling in the silence as he gestured around him to the tower. "Well, I _would _be one if I could ever get this darn contraption to work…it's supposed to make dishes drier, faster, but so far, it's just a hunk of junk…" Maurice suddenly muttered, kicking at the strange contraption that Juliette studied for a moment.

What looked like a used-to-be-furnace was squarely the heart of the contraption, a fire burning inside of it. A long, metal arm about the width of a turkey plate fed from the furnace with two different arms coming out from it. One was on the very top, and the other sprouted out from the side, just above a small table full of plates. A section of the straight arm, before it fed out to that table of plates, was completely gone, in its place a fire starter that seemed to be the cause of the explosion. The top of the furnace was filled with broken shards of plates, and on the side of the furnace was a single lever. Juliette blinked once or twice, tilting her head to the side, before her eyes brightened as she figured out what was wrong with the machine.

"C-Can I try to-to fix it?" As if on second thought, the girl added "Please?" to her sentence, looking at Maurice with big, green eyes. Though normally the grandfather would say no, in case the machine blew up and the child got hurt…he couldn't bring himself to say that one little word to orphaned girl, who really didn't have much going for her at the moment.

"Alright. But be careful." Maurice conceded, as the girl gave a nod, a tiny glint of happiness in her green eyes. Under Maurice's watchful gaze, she picked up a hammer, a few nails, and four different scrap metal type things she found on the floor. As fast as she could, the girl limped towards the machine then. Maurice noticed her horrible limp…but didn't say a word about it. Something's were better left unspoken.

Carefully, the girl gripped the hammer in her hand, and used it to slowly push in a nail so that the wood was connected to the fire starter/puffer type thing. She repeated this three more times, on each of the four sides of the fire starter; where it fed into the metal arm. Placing the hammer back down on the floor, the girl took the wrench next and used it to tighten up the metal all over the arm. When finally she was finished, and Maurice was watching her with furrowed, confused brows, the girl pulled the lever on the side of the furnace, and stood on her tippy toe to feed in a plate to the machine.

The machine hummed a low guttural sound, coming to life. The fire starter started to puff in air furiously, while the furnace kept the arms hot. Suddenly, the plate landed with a small, barely audible thud…on the table. Maurice blinked, taken aback in shock, and Juliette blinked too, a hopeful look in her eyes that she hadn't done anything wrong.

"It works." Maurice managed to say aloud, awe in his tone. "Haha, it _works_!" Maurice practically jumped up and down for joy, excited as he was that his machine worked. Suddenly turning towards the girl, his expression was of slight awe. "How did you do that? Fix it, I mean. How did you know what to do?"

"I-I'm used to making things, at the orphanage, I mean." Juliette explained quietly, an almost smile coming to her lips as she realized that she had just done something good. That smile was immediately replaced by panic, when the girl realized she was letting the secret slip. She had to leave! She couldn't answer any questions about it!

"What do you mean?" Maurice asked, his white brows pulled together in questioning, as he turned towards the girl…but found he was just talking to himself. Juliette was gone.

* * *

**Sorry for not updating in forever! Life's been pretty annoyingly crazy lately, so I finally managed to write all this out tonight! **

**Okay, so the thing about the machine Maurice is trying to build...I'm not sure I explained it well enough. I guess you'll all be the judge of that though...I don't know. I have a mental picture on what it looks like, but other than that...**

**Anyway, I would really appreciate it you guys reviewed. I know every author begs for reviews and stuff, but really, it's only because we want feedback. We can't just live on someone favoriting the story, but not reviewing it! If you really like the story, all you have to do is just write one tiny sentence. Say 'I like it' or 'Haha, this was funny' and I'll take it. But please, don't just read and not review. :( **

**Anyway, goodnight everyone! **


	13. TikTok, Duster, and Light

The orphaned girl made a mad, limping, dash down the winding staircase, and sprinted as fast as she could with her still weak body and horrible limping foot away from that place. She had to get out of there fast, before he started asking questions, and she started giving answers.

Finally determining she was far enough away from the old man and his inventing room, the girl gave a slight sigh of relief, letting her shoulders drop in the process. Why she kept spilling details about what her and the other orphans were forced to do, she didn't know. She only knew that if she kept up with this, she'd be dead soon, because Master Brys _would_ find her. It didn't matter if she was in a fancy home or not. He would find her, and he would hurt her.

"…Lumiere…*giggle*… stop that Lumiere…" The sound of a voice immediately made Juliette tense up, as she let her eyes grow wide…and not panicked, for once, but curious. She could hear voices from behind one a curtain. But this curtain was different. Unlike all the other tapestries which were pulled back to show what a beautiful day it was…the one wasn't. It covered up nearly half of the window, but the girl could clearly see the imprint of two bodies from behind it. There was a sudden, deep laugh from behind the curtain, as though…there was a man behind there.

"_Mon amour_, I cannot help it. It's what being in your presence does to me." Faintly, Juliette heard kissing sounds, and more giggling from behind the loose curtain. The girl blinked a few times, not understanding what was happening. There was only one way to find out, the girl's mind reasoned, as she took as step forward to open up the curtain.

But, before she could do so, the tapestry was flung open, making the poor girl immediately flinch, as she stumbled back a few steps and fell flat on her rear. She couldn't help the fact that her hands instinctively flew in front of her face, or how her body started to shake in slight fear.

"Oh!" A feminine voice said, as if suddenly seeing the orphaned girl not three steps away. "_Excusez-moi_, Juliette!" The feminine voice said hastily, as Juliette could hear the soft pattering of feet on the hallway's floors. "I did not mean to scare you, _chéri_." The voice said in a gentler, softer, more motherly tone. Juliette let herself open one eye carefully, determining who was here or not, before she let her shoulders drop in relief, and her arms dropped with them. It was only Babette.

"I-It's okay." The girl stuttered out, feeling her face grow red as she stared down at her lap. Silly girl, you acted like a fool, and all for not, the girl's mind chastised. But Babette only smiled gently at the girl, before helping the teenager to her foot. By now, it was old news in the castle that the girl had a horrible limp. While Babette usually tuned out the sillier rumors, she couldn't help but wonder what had happened to make the girl's leg so…so…useless.

"Bien." Babette said with a smile towards the girl, brushing the girl off quickly to make sure there weren't any new bruises or such on the child. She'd grown quite fond of her over a month.

When Belle was busy trying to keep her children under control, and Mrs. Potts had work to do in the kitchen, Babette would usually go up and check on the teen herself. She'd use any excuse to get away from her work, really, but after awhile, seeing the orphaned girl hadn't been an excuse any longer. It had been more like…like a pleasure to see how the girl did slightly better every day.

"_Amour_, are you going to introduce me?" A foreign, male voice asked with a chuckle, making Juliette look up, immediately tensing. The man was tall, stick thin, but his brown eyes were bouncing with mischief. His light brown hair was pulled back with a neat bow, and a nose a bit too long for his face, and his clothes were of fine material…but there was an impish look to him that immediately made Juliette wary.

"You have a voice; introduce yourself." Babette said simply to her husband, resisting the urge to smirk at the man. Honestly though, after years of marriage, he should know that she never did do as he asked. Why he still bothered to ask though would forever be a mystery to the woman.

"_Mon amour_, you pain me with your words." Lumiere said dramatically, clutching at his heart. "But, if you will not _introduire_ me, than I will have to do it myself." Lumiere's eyes danced with mischief, as he stepped forward and reached for Juliette's hand.

The girl's eyes went wide at the movement, and she flinched so fiercely that her entire too-thin frame jerked horribly, and her feet, still a bit unused to walking after so long in bed, started to slip from underneath her. Had it not been for Babette catching the girl at the last second by the arm, the poor child would have fallen face first on the ground.

"Careful, _chéri_." Babette's gentle voice said, steadying the girl back on her feet before releasing her too-small body from her hands. Her brown eyes glared at her husband over the girl's head. Lumiere, who actually seemed a bit concerned, mouthed 'sorry' and gave a sheepish shrug of his shoulders. He had forgotten that the girl was…how do you say…frail. And not to mention terrified of strangers.

"_Pardon_, _fille petit_, little girl_._ I am Lumiere." What Lumiere lacked in grace with the girl, he made up with in charm as he swooped down low to a rather impressive bow, to which Babette rolled her eyes, and flicked off something on her maids clothes while she wondered where her daughter, Gemma could be at this time. Juliette, however, had her large, hypnotic green eyes wide, wondering why someone would bow to her. Surely this person must not know of her social standing…which was…absolutely none. Still, though an orphan with hardly any education, the girl knew it would be rude not to answer back.

"I'm Juli-Juliette." The girl stuttered, her eyes cast to the ground and an embarrassed blush creeping onto her cheeks. She hated her stutter; really, she did. It made her seem like a child who was hiding behind their mother's skirts, when really she was…she was…well, she wasn't quite sure what she was at the moment, but soon she'd figure it out.

"_Enchanté_." Lumiere said gently towards the girl, who kept her head so low that her dark, thick curls hid her face. For a moment, she looked up, seeing the gentleness that had replaced the mischief in Lumiere's eyes. He smiled towards her winningly, and the girl felt her own features morphing into a weak, hopeful look. That is, until she heard a voice.

"Lumiere! Lumiere! LUMIERE!" A voice shouted from what seemed to be not too distant. Juliette cringed immediately, hating the shouting, before she looked questioningly at Lumiere as to why someone as shouting his name.

"And there is _Monsieur_ Tik-Tok himself." Lumiere mumbled beneath his breath, just loud enough for Babette to smirk and twist a piece of her hair back, and Juliette to wonder what on earth he meant.

"I should be getting back to my work anyway." Babette said, a sly smile on her features as she walked over to her husband. "_Au revoir_." The woman said, reaching over to kiss her awaiting husband, who already had his lips puckered out…before she used the feather duster in her hand to playfully brush it across his face, and then slink away. She turned around briefly for a moment, to smile at Juliette, before she was gone. Lumiere though, didn't want to be left without a kiss, as he immediately started following after her with a coy smile. But he was interrupted by another.

"Lumiere, you dim witted torch! Just where have you been?" A plump, curly mustached man exclaimed in a loud voice that made Juliette wince. Lumiere, didn't even seem fazed by this, just slightly annoyed, though he excellently kept it down.

"Do you realize that it is exactly—" the man stopped a moment, taking his fancy looking pocket watch out of his waistcoat, and looking at the time before continuing on. "Exactly two hours and twenty-one minutes until the party?" Then the man's eyes grew wide. "Oh my! Only two hours and twenty-one—no, make that _twenty_—minutes until the party! And there's still so much to do! The punch still isn't made, and the decorations aren't top notch, and oh, the doorknobs still need to be shined, and then the _cutlery_—"

"_Mon ami_, Cogsworth, relax. We have _two_ hours!" Lumiere pointed out, cutting off the so called named (without his knowing)_ Monsieur _Tik-Tok. Juliette, knowing immediately when she wasn't needed or wanted any longer, silently started to slip away.

"And over a million things that still need to be done!" Cogsworth fretted, mostly to himself. He was a perfectionist; it was his life's work. "But half my worries would probably be gone if it wasn't for you, sneaking off and chasing after anything with dark hair and full lips and not doing any of your duties!" Cogsworth nearly shouted, though Lumiere kept his calm composure, as always. By now, he knew how to get around Cogsworth. This was _his _life's work.

"Ah, you see _mon ami_, I would have been doing my work, but my new friend, Juliette, was in need of some…how do you say…_directions_, so naturally I had to stop and point her in the right direction. _Droit_, right, Julitette?" Lumiere easily lied, turning to get a confirmation from the teenage orphan that his story checked out. His easy going smile faltered then, and slight alarm took a hold of his eyes. "Juliette?" He asked again…but there was no answer. Juliette was gone.

* * *

**I am the reason why bad things happen, you know that? I haven't updated this story in forever, and I feel so horrible about it, I mean, really, really, really, really horrible. Like, you're a little kid who knows they've done something wrong and is going to be punished for it kind of feeling. I have no excuse for my horrible updating skills, and if you all were to desert this story right now, I would understand completely. I hope it doesn't come to that, but if it does, than *Sigh* I guess I kind of deserve it for not updating. **

**For those of you who don't want to give up on me just yet, and are willing to give me a chance, I have made a promise to myself. I, ConverseRlife, do solemnly swear, to update at least **_**once**_** every week. If I break this promise, you can send evil robot killing machines after me, and I will totally understand and not take it to heart. Really, I won't. **

**So in this chapter, Juliette met up with Lumiere, Babette, and **_**Monsieur **_**Tik-Tok (aka, Cogsworth—I thought I'd give him a nickname). This chapter was mostly a filler, because in next chapter, Juliette is going to be meeting a boy that we all know and love…his name starts with C and ends with P! I bet you all know who it is! **

**Please review you guys! Remember, I don't EVER mind constructive criticism and your all getting sundae's in my book if you review! Thanks! **


	14. Could it Be a Crush?

It's hard to explain what was going on in the orphan girl's head while she limped down hallways and corridors of this never ending maze of a home. Every image she was bombarded with she burned into her memory, promising herself that she would never forget any of this. And, also in her mind, a dream was starting to form.

She started to imagine herself living in this place, for good. Always warm, always being able to eat, always having a nice bed (and not a straw one) to sleep in. Having actual friends for once, having no worries besides what was for dinner…she might be a bit mad that these people had no sense of what the outside world was like, and having such over expenditure in their home…but she couldn't help but dream.

For once in her life, she was dreaming of more than just having a steady job when she grew older, or having enough money to buy a small cottage for herself. She was dreaming about living almost like a Princess, with anything she wanted at her fingertips, a castle full of servants just there to serve her, and people who were actually nice for a chan—

SMACK!

Not paying attention to where she'd been limping, Juliette had managed to connect headlong into someone else. She could hear the complaints already coming from the other person, and she could feel her body start to shake in fear. Her green eyes became panicked, and her breathing started to become shallow and labored. She was having one of her attacks, she realized. One of her attacks, meaning the time when panic took a hold of her entire body, meant that no matter how much she tried to runaway, she couldn't. Her body was frozen solid in that single spot, in fear, terror, and panic as to what was going to come. All the girl was able to do was hold up her arms in an attempt to block the blows to her head.

"I'm sorry! Are you alright?" A voice close to the girl said, too close for the girl's comfort. She shut her eyes even harder, and tucked her head into her knees. Any second now the blows would start…any second. All day she'd been falling and flinching, but they'd all turned out to be false alarms…but she was almost positive this one wasn't.

"Did I hurt you?" The voice, a distinctive young, male voice to be exact, asked, the tone concerned and even scared...for her well being. The sound of his seemingly sincere voice, and the thought that he was worried for her made Juliette relax, a little. She opened her green eyes slowly, and lifted her head from where it was tucked into her knees.

There was a face next to hers, a face that was twisted in guilt and concern. Sandy and shaggy blonde hair that reached to the back of his neck fell forward onto his face, as the boy leaned so close to the girl that she could see her reflection in his dark blue eyes. Blonde eyebrows that matched his hair furrowed together in sincere worry, and his lips curved into an unhappy frown. He must be close to her age, Juliette surmised, staring at the boy with wide green eyes. But he was so…clean cut.

The girl had never met any boys her age before...by the time they reached the age of ten or so, most orphaned boys were leaders of gangs, pick pockets, thieves, and what not. And almost all of them lived on the streets, so the word 'clean' was never used to describe them. So what was this boy, in front of her, doing? Was he working a type of good-boy angle to steal from this place, or was he just another miserable orphan like she, that had been found and taken in, for the time being? The first one seemed more likely than the last, but all the same, the girl finally took in a deep breath and answered.

"I-I'm f-fine." Juliette stuttered out, her green eyes on guard and her body tensed up still, in case this boy decided to do anything. Probably not, since most orphans could spot each other a mile away (wearing rags, skinnier than a baby's pinky, always sick; it wasn't hard to pick out another orphan from the crowd) and knew that they weren't good targets to steal from…but one could never be too careful, especially when it came to the male species. The girl had to repress a shudder as the thought crossed her mind.

"Are you sure? You don't really look so good…" Chip trailed off uncertainly, on his knees next to the girl who was in a frightened position on the ground. She looked too skinny to be healthy; deep, dark bruises, scars, and cuts littered the exposed parts of her body, and she looked so…so…scared. And the dress she was wearing…Chip wasn't one to notice female fashion, but there was something oddly familiar about the dress she was wearing…

"I-I'm fine…th-thank you." Though she was never one to trust a person so easily, there was something oddly comforting in this boy's dark blue eyes. Well, maybe comforting wasn't the right word for what she felt. She felt like…like her heart was doing a million little flutters in her chest, like her stomach was doing flip flops, but in the good way, like all she wanted to do was smile at this boy. Feeling suddenly embarrassed from the way she must look, Juliette hurriedly dropped the guarded pose she had, and started to run her fingers through her thick curls, while also running her tongue over her teeth to make sure nothing was in them.

"Well…okay…" Chip answered, wondering in the back of his mind why the girl was hurriedly running her fingers through her hair, or looking at him with a warmer expression than before. "I've never seen you around here before…are you visiting someone for the week?" The sandy blonde haired boy asked politely and curiously. Juliette felt her heart start thudding even harder, and her cheeks start to warm up.

"Um…k-kind of." Well, technically she was visiting, and by the week's end she'd surely be back out on her way to the streets, so she really wasn't lying.

"Awesome! It'll be nice to have someone else around for once; things can get kind of boring here after awhile." Chip said with a grin. Butterflies went up and down in his stomach as he saw the girl tilt her head to the side, and look at him with those wide, green eyes. He suddenly ran his fingers through his tangled blonde hair once, and blinked, trying to figure out this strange new feeling he felt towards this girl. "My name's Chip; well, actually, 'Chip' is more of a nickname, but that's what everyone calls me, so you can call me Chip too—unless you want to call me by my full name, of course." He was babbling, the boy realized. But…this was insane…he never babbled! He always knew what to say; so how come he was out of words when it came to talking to this girl?

"I-I'm Juliette." The orphan girl answered back shyly, even shier than usual. For some reason, this boy made her heart flutter. He made her stomach do flip flops, and he made her even more shy than she usually was. He made her feel…good and not scared, for once.

"Oh! I know you! You're that orphan girl everyone keeps talking about." Chip blurted before he thought, and immediately, he felt horrible. Wasn't it bad enough the girl had no parents; did he really need to point it out to her again, and this time with the added bonus that she'd been the talk of the castle for a month now?

"I'm sorry! That came out wrong!" Chip quickly apologized, hoping any chance he'd had with the girl hadn't been ruined. Wait…chance…with the girl? That thought was crazy…but if you compare it with how his cheeks were heating up, how he was thinking about his appearance for once, and how he had butterflies in his stomach…the only possible explanation was that he had…a…a…crush!

"'S o-okay. 'S not li-like it ain't true." Juliette answered quietly, trying to put on a brave face to show that it didn't matter to her. And why should it? She was an orphan, and she knew that in a place with so many people, a half-dead runaway found unconscious in the snow was bound to be big news. But on the inside, deep inside where the girl tucked all her feelings away, it did sting a little to be reminded of these things.

"I was going to go outside for awhile…do you want to come?" Chip asked, his heart pounding for the girl to say 'yes'. He felt really bad about what he'd said…but Juliette seemed to be alright with it, so things must be good. Right?

"Out-outside?" Even the freckles on the girl's face seemed to light up at the chance to go anywhere with this boy. And plus, she hadn't been outside since she'd been 'rescued'. Maybe some much needed fresh air would clear away these strange feelings, and these silly dreams of hers of staying here for good. "O-okay." Juliette said, wincing as she lifted herself back onto her feet. Chip grinned happily, like a child who'd gotten to do something he wasn't usually allowed to do, and Juliette even felt the corners of her mouth twitching. Not smiling, no, but twitching. Which was as good a start as any.

* * *

**So sorry I was MIA for so long! My computer decided to crash, and then it was down for like three weeks, and last week was homecoming week at school, and you can't expect me to update when it's homecoming week! I mean, I know I swore I'd update every week, but how about you all just make an exception? Please? :)**

**Alright so, I think I have an actual direction with this story now! Woo hooo! And I can't wait till the upcoming chapters, so please stick around! Thanks!**

**-On a side note, those who are following my TLM story, it got updated too. :)**

**-Oh, on another side note, because I keep forgetting, you know the story Juliette was reading earlier in this story? Well, unfortunately, no one guessed it. :( But the most common guess was Frankenstein, which I have to admit IS pretty good! But in reality, it was a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne (I believe, but don't quote me on that) called 'Rappucini's Daughter'. It's a story about a young italian man who falls in love with a beautiful maiden...but her father, a so called 'man of science' and she have a secret, a secret so big and diasterous that it could spell death for all. **

**My class read it in eigth grade, and once you get past all the big words, and long descriptions that are in old English, you get pretty hooked on it. :) **


	15. Tea and Treats Time

"Oh. Right. Sorry." The downhearted expression on Chip's face made Juliette instantly regret saying what she did. She should have just shrugged when he had asked if she'd ever eaten a cookie, not actually spoken aloud and hurt his feelings like this. But in all actuality, Chip's feelings _weren't_ the ones that were hurt. Rather, he assumed that it was Juliette's feelings that were hurt because of his senselessness towards a sensitive subject; her orphan roots. "You know what? I've never had an orange before. To each his own, right?" Chip was desperate to make amends to this girl, even though she didn't even realize he was trying to make amends. She merely gave him a shrug and a nod to show that she was listening. She was done speaking…for now.

"Let's go before they take away the cookies." Chip pushed one of the large wooden doors carelessly, as though he'd been doing it all his life (which he had, even when his life had been put on hold for ten years)…but for Juliette, it was a different story. She'd never pushed open a door carelessly…usually she was terrified what might be behind it. But, strangely, when she was with this…Chip boy, she wasn't so terrified. She was more preoccupied on how she looked or acted around him than the terrors of everyday life.

Following the boy into the large kitchen, Juliette's eyes widened in surprise, before she let out a sigh and let her shoulders drop. Everything in this place was grand, she supposed. Everything was grand…and completely out of her reach.

Chip suddenly whirled around, and put a finger to his lips, motioning to be quiet. Well, that was easy enough for Juliette. She followed the boy silently through the kitchen, taking in each marvel with a wondering look, before she nearly bumped into the boy from the back. He had stopped so suddenly…Juliette wondered what he was looking at. Coming to his side, she let her eyes travel from his eyes to…to a plate of…of…cookies, she supposed. She watched as the boy grinned foolishly at her, Juliette nearly had to catch herself before she swooned, and then the boy's hand reached for a cookie…

"Chip! You know better than to spoil your dinner with sweets!" A motherly, admonishing voice suddenly put Juliette…not on guard, but on wary watch as she knew that voice. It belonged to…to…Mrs.…Mrs.…Potts! Yes, that was her name, Mrs. Potts!

"Just one cookie Momma? Please?" Chip begged, but he already knew this battle was lost. His mother would never allow him to eat before dinner; it had always been that way, and most likely, forever would be. Juliette blinked, letting her green eyes flash between Mrs. Potts and Chip. They were…they were…related? Mrs. Potts son, whom she'd talked so often about seeing as how he was around Juliette's age, was _Chip_? Almost immediately, Juliette shook those thoughts off. She was starting to learn that everything in this place was not what it seemed.

"Not in this century m'dear." Mrs. Potts answered her son, smacking his hand away from the tray of cooling cookies. The kitchens were nearly empty at this time of day which was normal since the royal family had already eaten an early dinner to prepare for the night's festivities. "Juliette! How nice to see you, child! You're looking much better." Mrs. Potts usually was the first to tell you that lying was unacceptable…but she could make an excuse for herself in this case.

Juliette still had healing, deep bruises from a particularly bad beating at the orphanage that she still hadn't discussed with anyone. There were circles under the girl's eyes, giving her face a much more haggard appearance than what it really was. The hand-me-down dress the girl was wearing had belonged to her own daughters when they'd been about Juliette's age…and the way it hung on the girl like a limp rag worried the motherly matron. After all, she'd been practically shoving food down the girl's throat day and night…so how could she still be so painfully skinny? Was she just not eating?

Juliette dipped her head as a thank-you to Mrs. Potts, and though she felt the woman's eyes study her from top to bottom…at the moment, the child didn't care. She had much more important things in her mind. Like…did Chip notice her green eyes, or nice, clean skin? If he did…did he like them? If he didn't…well, was there something he liked instead? These thoughts, as you can see, were the upmost priority in Juliette's mind.

"Now where are the two of you off too?" Mrs. Potts asked finally, her voice sweet as sugar. And sugar was exactly what Chip was after too. His hand reached over to quickly grab a cookie, but was again smacked away by his mother. He gave a groan and watched as the tray of cookies was whisked out of his sight.

"We were gonna go outside. There's like, three inches of new snow!" Quickly, Chip snuck a peak at Juliette, wondering if his using 'we' would offend her. The girl, who caught him looking, let her eyes brighten and she pushed her unruly, curls forward. The freckles on her face seemed to dance in happiness, and though no smile touched her lips, it was obvious that she was happy.

"Well, if you're going to out then you must have your cloak, don't you dear?" Mrs. Potts voice had a disapproving ring to it, because she knew that her son had most likely forgotten to get anything to keep him warm. She let her eyes travel over to Juliette for a second…and she caught an interesting thing. The girl was running her thin fingers through her wild curls, and looking in Chip's direction every few seconds with a small blush on her cheeks. All at once, it hit the woman like a cup of bad tasting tea. Juliette…had a _crush_ on her son. How cute!

"Well…um…hehe…" Chip sheepishly looked up at his mother with one of those oops-I-forgot expressions.

"Christopher Potts, you march yourself right to your room and get your cloak. It's a good thing I caught you before you went out; imagine, you would have frozen solid out there!" Mrs. Potts wasn't an overly protective mother; she knew after two girls, and three boys that Chip just wanted to have some fun. But that didn't mean that she was going to let him go out and become a Popsicle out there!

"Momma…." Chip groaned, his bright red ears poking out of his blonde hair in embarrassment. He looked over at Juliette, something that wasn't lost on his mother, and wondered if she thought he was a baby for letting himself be scolded. If the girl did, she didn't show it. Her pretty features were blank, but when she caught him looking at her, the poor girl's cheeks burned brightly and she looked away.

"Shoo, go get your cloak." Mrs. Potts said, while gently pushing her son towards the door. "And get your old one while you're up in your room too." Though her fifteen year old son shot her a clearly confused look because of the last sentence, he still raced out of the kitchen, determined to be back within a moment's notice. Juliette looked at the doors, going to follow him, when she felt her wrist gently grasped.

"Why don't you stay here and rest for a minute dear? Chip will be back in a few minutes anyhow." Juliette trusted Mrs. Potts; after all, the woman had earned it by tending to the girl when she'd been sick. So, the girl hoisted herself up on a low stool that the kindly matron gestured at, and then rubbed at her bad leg gently. She wasn't used to all this walking, that the pain that she'd been ignoring was suddenly springing back to life.

A loud, whistling sound suddenly made the poor orphan girl nearly jump out of her skin. Her arms immediately went upwards in a reflex reaction, and her body stiffened so hard that if she'd been in the water, she would've sank like a heavy stone. She was absolutely, positively, terrified.

"Oops! Sorry m'dear!" Mrs. Potts immediately apologized, rushing over to the whistling teapot that was resting on the stove. Thank goodness the kitchen was nearly empty at the moment; otherwise the poor girl would have had a near panic attack do the loud noise and all the people.

"I was making some hot tea for myself, and I must have completely forgotten!" From the corner of her eye, Mrs. Potts could see the terrified look slowly disappearing from Juliette's features, and her arms were lowering down slowly as she realized there was no threat. Poor dear, the woman thought to herself. Such an innocent young girl, and to be so scared of even the tiniest noise because of all she'd been through. "How about a spot of tea for yourself dear, hm? You look like you could use it."

Juliette even surprised herself when her lips started moving and they said, "Y-Yes…please." The warmth in the room and the kindness just radiating off of Mrs. Potts somehow made the girl feel…safe. She felt safe and…and…no. No, no, no, no, no. She wouldn't acknowledge the other feeling, no matter what.

"And a please too? What a nice, polite child!" Mrs. Potts couldn't help but smile warmly as the girl's head looked downwards, an embarrassed blush creeping onto her pale cheeks. Handing the girl her cup of tea, the motherly woman watched as Juliette took a tentative sip of the liquid inside, and immediately brightened when she realized that it tasted..._good_.

"Oh! I almost forgot! What's tea without a treat?" Mrs. Potts desperately wanted to lift up the girl's spirits, to give her a taste of normal life. What would happen to this girl was up to the Master and Belle (no one really could find it in themselves to call Belle 'Mistress', not that the woman minded one bit), and it seemed everyone was on pins and needles trying to find out.

"Here dear, have a cookie. Their right out of the oven. But careful, they might be a little hot." Juliette's eyes went wide as she stared at the cookie tray that Mrs. Potts whisked in front of her. She was kind of hungry…but, wait, hadn't the motherly woman just said…?

"Bu-but you told Ch-Chip…"

"Never mind what I told Chip." Mrs. Potts answered with a smile. "Just go on and take a cookie m'dear. It'll be our little secret." With a conspirator type wink towards Juliette, Mrs. Potts then nudged the tray towards the girl a little bit more. The child needed to eat much more if she wanted to gain any weight!

"O-Okay…" Juliette trailed off unsurely, still not liking the idea of doing something that Chip had just been told was wrong. But…if Mrs. Potts said it was alright…gingerly, the girl let her fingers pick up a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie. Without even thinking, she took a small bite of it…and immediately her eyes went wider than they'd ever been. How could she have missed out on this…this…heavenly food for so many years? This was…amazing! Fantastic! Chocolate…cookie dough…oh, how the girl wanted to kick herself for never having gotten a cookie before!

"I-It's…_good_. Really g-good." Juliette said brightly, looking up at Mrs. Potts with a happy expression. There was a grateful twinkling in the girl's eyes, and Mrs. Potts had to laugh at that.

"I'm glad you like them dear. Their Chip's favorite's, you know." The motherly woman winked that conspirator wink at the orphan again, and Juliette blushed furiously as she realized the woman knew that she…kind of liked Chip. Mrs. Potts laughed once again.

"Alright, alright, I got both cloaks Momma. Now can we please go outside?" Chip's good natured, slightly out of breath whine made Juliette's head pop up like a rocket. She felt her heart beat fast as he grinned at her, and faintly, she felt her lips twitching once again, almost smiling. Almost, but not quite.

"Give me your old one first, dear." Mrs. Potts ordered, and Chip relinquished his older cloak. It really wasn't that old, he'd only used it for about a year, but from the way he was growing a new one had been needed. Juliette slowly got off the stool (after stuffing the entire cookie into her mouth and setting the teacup back down), and winced when her bad foot touched the ground. But, the wince was suddenly placed by confusion when she felt warm hands wrapping a cloak around her.

"There, just as I thought. It fits you perfectly dear." And for once, an item of clothing _did _fit Juliette well. Chip had gone through a massive growth spurt over the summer, and he'd transformed from the little boy who was eager to play, to a young man eager to look at girls. So, this old cloak fit Juliette nicely, quite snug actually, which was just perfect for the girl.

"Wh-What…?" Juliette wondered, feeling the heavy, warm material that made up the cloak suddenly wrapped around her body. It smelled like Chip, the girl realized with a slight blush.

"Well, you didn't think I was going to let you go out into that weather wearing nothing but that dress, did you child? Heavens above my dear, if Chip would have frozen solid, than _you_ would have been frozen in an entire block of ice and not found for another century!" Mrs. Potts motherly, disapproving voice rang out, not at all liking the idea that Juliette _or _Chip would have gone outside, in that cold, with nothing but their normal clothes.

"Okay, okay, Momma. Can we just go now?" Chip's impatient voice rang out to his mother, wanting desperately to go out into that snow with Juliette. Someone his own age…someone he liked…someone he could actually have a normal snowball fight with!

"Yes, yes, you can go. Shoo, out of here with the both of you." Mrs. Potts finally laughed, pushing her son in the direction of the _other_ entrance to the kitchen, the one that lead outdoors. Juliette followed, of course, but not before she looked back at Mrs. Potts with a grateful, happy expression.

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**Sorry I've been MIA forever, but i've been re-editing this story and my other story Altered Reality. :D Hope you guys like it all! Altered Reality will be posted tomorrow, for everyone who's following that story. And for this one, I think you should go back to the previous chapters and re-read them. Most of them have be edited in at least some small way. :D Thanks!**


	16. Snowballs

"Juliette! Think fast!" A laughing voice calling her name made Juliette turn to her left a moment, wondering what this could be about…and in an instant, she felt a cold, slushy object hit her left cheek. Dumbfounded, she just stood there, blinking in confusion and slowly bringing her fingers to her throbbing cheek.

The girl heard Chip's laughter from not far away. Looking at him, her brows knitted together, and her eyes had hurt written all over them. Had he…had this boy just thrown snow at her? Why on earth would he do that? Did he mean to hurt her after all? She wouldn't put it past him. Men were a cruel race.

"Hey, are you alright?" Chip jogged over to where Juliette was, noticing the girl's slight flinch as he did so. Her expression looked…hurt. Not in the physical way…but in the emotional way. As though he'd done something awful to her.

"Wh-why would you do that?" Juliette asked in her quiet, stuttered voice. She looked straight at Chip, ignoring the way her heart fluttered as she saw little snow flurries stuck to his hair.

Snow. The last time she'd been outside, in snow, she'd been terrified and running for her dear life. A distinct memory of feeling freezing, hungry, helpless, and a horrible pain from her body had made the girl stumble until she fell into the ground. It was hard to see an inch in front of her face…it was snowing, and she was on the edge of a blackout. She tried to get back up, but her bad foot could no longer support what little weight she put on it. And then…darkness. The next thing she remembered was waking up to the sound of Arabella, Alex, and Gemma talking about how funny she looked.

"I just…I-I thought we might…have a snowball fight. I didn't mean for it to hurt you." Chip let his dark blue eyes grow worried as they darted towards the small bruise forming on Juliette's cheek already. Idiot, he scolded himself. The girl was still weak; he shouldn't have thrown _anything_ at her. "I'm sorry."

Juliette blinked once, her hurt expression melting away. She realized almost immediately that Chip thought that she was hurt because he'd thrown snow at her…not because she was remembering the events that had led her here, to this sanctuary of sorts for the girl. And he was so sincere in his apology to her…the girl felt her heart thump wildly in her chest. This…this was so unreasonable! Only a minute ago the girl had felt like he'd acted like a villain to try and hurt her…and now she was fighting the urge to lean in and…and…._kiss_ him.

"Wh-what's a…a…snow_ball_ fi-fight?" Juliette finally asked, breaking the silence in between the teens and leaning as far away from Chip as humanly possible. Her body was insane. That was the only explanation. Her body had just gone insane.

"You don't know what a snowball fight is?" Chip asked aloud, shock in his voice, though it was mixed with just a hint of relief. He didn't like seeing Juliette upset; he made him upset. "How can you not know? I mean, _everyone_ has had snowball fights before!" Chip was still so surprised, and at the way his voice arched Juliette winced. Then the girl gave a sigh, her shoulders slumping in the process and her green eyes casting unto the ground.

"I'm a-an orphan, not everyone, re-remember?" Juliette said softly, her eyes rising slightly to meet Chip's. Once again, for the second time in a day, Chip's face became downhearted. His own shoulders slumped, and his blonde brows knit together in a slight grimace.

"Oh. Yeah, I remember. Sorry…again." Juliette felt her heart nearly rip out of her chest in hurt. Chip looked so sorry, and so…so adorable. His ears flared a slight shade of pink, and the expression on his face looked like a child who'd just been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. And then, in an instant, that expression was melting, and a half grin replaced it.

"Just because your…you know, doesn't mean that you shouldn't have the same experiences as others though. I'll teach you _everything_ you need to know about snowball fights, okay?" The boy's upbeat attitude and optimistic words made Juliette look up fully. Chip smiled at her one of his most reckless smiles. The girl even felt her own lips trying to twitch into a return smile at that.

"'K." Juliette answered, slightly nervous, but still happy that she'd learn something new. Most children her age dreaded learning anything, but this girl was different. She absolutely loved it, maybe because she'd never known that there was a world outside of her prison, or, rather, the orphanage.

"Okay, so first you get a lot of snow." Demonstrating, Chip leaned down and quickly gathered two handfuls of snow, before standing back up again. He noticed the way Juliette's green eyes widened in interest, as though this was the best thing she could ever learn. "Then, you mash them both together and try to shape it so that it looks like a ball." Giving an example, Chip expertly smashed the two handfuls of snow together and started to make it into a ball.

"That doesn't l-look like a ball." Juliette said in that quiet voice of hers, shivering ever so slightly in the cold. Though wearing a cloak, she wasn't accustomed to these temperatures, since she'd been indoors for so long. But even the freckles on her face were interested as to what Chip was doing, and the girl's heart fluttered as he grinned at her.

"It's not supposed to be perfect; that's half the fun." Chip answered, feeling like a teacher, and liking the idea of Juliette as his pupil. His mother had been right, Juliette _did _like learning. A lot more than he did, that was for sure.

"What's the o-other half?" Puzzled, the girl's green eyes widened in surprise as Chip gently deposited the snowball into her hands. She looked at him with an alarmed expression, but he only grinned a boyish grin at her.

"The other half is throwing it at someone." Still clearly confused, Juliette tried to give Chip back the snowball, but the boy wouldn't extend his hands to take it. Instead, he gave a sigh, and ran his fingers through his blonde hair, before figuring out a way to explain this to Juliette. "See, after you've made the snowball, you're supposed to throw it at someone. Then they throw one back at you, then you throw one back at them, and it goes on and on and on 'til someone stops."

"I-I don't get it." Juliette confessed with a sigh, looking down at her feet a bit shamefully. "Why w-would anyone want to do t-that?" Chip cocked his head to the side, thinking this question through, before shrugging his shoulders.

"'Cause it's fun." Though he was dying to ask it, Chip made sure to refrain from asking whether or not Juliette had ever _had_ fun. First she'd never had a cookie, then she had no clue what a snowball fight was…geez, were all orphans like this? You would think being clustered with other children of various ages would make for a bunch of different games in the snow, but apparently not.

"Fun?" Juliette mused, her brows pulling together in thought. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had fun, outdoors, with another child.

Her days at the orphanage had been on a strict schedule, and with the threadbare clothes that all the children wore, going outside during the winter was usually a horrible form of torture. And then when the warmer weather came, things to make came in higher demand, so unless you felt a strong urge to be caned for slacking off, you had better stay indoors and do as you were told. So, in all, 'fun' had never been part of Juliette's life. But…hey, as long as she was here…she might as well make a memory to keep her going when she was gone.

Gripping the snowball in her hands awkwardly, the girl didn't even recall thinking about it before she threw the packed snow at Chip. The boy stood there a moment, dumbfounded, before grinning widely.

"Oh, if that's the way you want it then," the boy gathered as much snow as he could, before packing it all into a thick ball of slush, "this means war!" Throwing the snowball and laughing, Chip hadn't realized that Juliette had quick reflexes. The girl ducked almost immediately, avoiding the ball all together.

SMACK!

The snowball didn't hit Juliette, but it definitely hit someone. Both teens looked up to see where the snowball had hit, and both of their eyes widened, for two different reasons of course. Juliette in awe; Chip in worry. There, in front of the two teenagers, stood Vincent himself, snow dripping from his face.

"Oops! Sorry Master!" Chip recovered first, out of all three people, quickly apologizing and shaking Juliette out of her trance like state. This was the master of the place that Juliette had been staying in? Somehow…she'd never pictured him looking like…like, well, _this_.

He was a big man, dwarfing Juliette easily. Even with arms covered in a long sleeve shirt, with a cloak draped over it, the girl could tell that he had muscles. Oh, and he was handsome, very handsome actually. He looked as though he couldn't even be past his twenties, with fine clothes that practically screamed he was of noble birth. The most striking feature about him, however, was the piercing blue eyes the man held. Though it might have seemed insane…Juliette felt as though she recognized this man, as though she'd seen him somewhere before. Those eyes were just so familiar…

"Remember to aim for his _head_ next time, Chip. Maybe then we can knock some sense into his thick skull." A warm, loving laugh immediately put a smile on the master's face, and it also let Chip exhale in relief. Only Juliet didn't move a muscle, didn't blink a green eye, and didn't so much as twitch a freckle. She knew this man from somewhere. She just knew that she'd seen him before…and knowing a man from her past was not something that put the girl at ease.

"And why would I, of all people, need to have sense knocked into me by a snowball?" Vincent asked, though there was subtle hint of playfulness in his voice. Suddenly, his eyes caught a small movement coming from somewhere next to Chip. Immediately, though his face didn't show it, he recognized who he was staring at.

The orphan girl he'd taken to the castle a month ago, the one named…Juliette, the one that had caused more than one argument between his wife and him, the one that had captured the interest of his children, and that of the servants. She was standing there, next to Chip, rubbing her thin arms in a sorry attempt to keep warm. Vincent couldn't help but feel a little sympathy for the girl; after all, here she was, after a month that he'd brought her to the castle…and the only thing that had changed about her in a month was that now, the girl was clean. Everything else looked the same. Dark bruises, too-thin body…the works. In the one moment that the girl looked up, and caught him staring at her, she immediately looked back at the ground shivering—no, _shuddering_.

"…the other…Vincent? Vincent!" The warm voice suddenly sounded more exasperated than before, and it made Vincent immediately break out of his thoughts and look back at his wife. She looked annoyed at having been tuned out, Vincent thought as an off note to himself.

"Sorry, Belle. I just got…distracted." His voice was deep, rumbling with a hint of uncertainty in it. Belle followed her husband's line of sight, still slightly annoyed, before it all melted away.

"Juliette!" The woman cried, causing the girl's head to snap up immediately, only a hint of terror in her eyes. She'd seen and heard Belle enough to know that the woman posed no threat, so the terror didn't come from there. No, the hint of terror the girl had came from two small voices that cried her name out at the same time as their mother, before zooming over to the girl.

"Juliette! Juliette!" Both Arabella and Alex chanted the girl's name over and over, tugging at the girl for their bit of attention. The freckled girl could usually follow along to what the children said, but at the moment, her mind was in a complete whirl, still trying to figure out where she'd seen Belle's husband before.

"Let's make a snowman, Juliette!" Alex cried out, breaking Juliette away from her whirl of thoughts. She kept her mouth shut though, knowing full well that talking was useless when dealing with these children.

"No! Me and Juliette are making snow angels!" Arabella shot back at her brother, continually tugging on Juliette's sleeve to get the poor girl moving. Alex frowned, his small features growing increasingly angry.

"Are not!"

"Are too!"

"Are _not_!"

"Are _too_!"

"Are no—"

"Ara and Alex; if you keep arguing then I'll send you both back inside, and Papa and I will stay out here with Jovianne." Belle's clear motherly warning immediately made both children cut off their arguments to one another, settling for glares that could have sent even the bravest man running away. Adjusting her grip on the year-old baby in her arms, the woman turned towards Juliette.

"I'm sorry." Belle said, a bit sheepishly as she waved a hand in the direction of her children. Juliette hardly took notice of the woman, but when the words reached her mind, at least the girl managed a shrug to say that she'd been listening. "How do you feel, dear? You've been on your fee—foot, all day…" Without even hesitating in the slightest, the woman reached out her arm and pressed the back of her hand on Juliette's forehead. Her other hand kept a good grip on her baby, Jovianne, who was now trying to do everything in her small power to escape. Juliette gave a noticeable flinch, but allowed it to pass. After all, she knew Belle was just a worry-wart.

"You're a bit warm." Belle realized, worry filling her features. She looked back at moment, and saw her husband had taken control of both the older children, engaging them in some kind of activity. The youngest child, however, was just now starting to settle in her mother's arms, though Belle wished that her husband would have taken the baby too. Well, at least he wasn't saying a word about Juliette.

"You should go to bed, sweetie. I don't want you to overexert yourself, and then wind up bedridden for another week." Gentle words, a warm tone, and plenty of personal space. That was the key when dealing with Juliette, Belle had learned. She also had learned that sometimes, questions shouldn't be asked, which was the exact case of how Juliette had acquired a cloak.

"No. I'm f-fine." That stubborn tone Juliette used momentarily surprised Belle, who'd thought that the girl didn't have a headstrong bone in her body. Hm. Maybe this time on her fee—er, foot, was rehabilitating the girl's natural spirit. Or maybe it was something else…something that Juliette was now looking at. Chip, who'd seen the royal children before Juliette, had hidden himself partially behind some trees. Though as amusing as that was, what was more amusing was the soft, sigh-worthy look on Juliette's features as she looked at the boy. Belle hid a knowing smile at that.

"Alright then." No sooner had those words come out of her mouth; the brunette was bombarded by a small body tugging at her dress frantically.

"Mama! Papa said that him and Ara could beat you and me in a—in a snowball fight! It's not true, right, Mama? Right?" Alex was near the edge of a panic attack, fearful that his father and sister may have the upper hand in this battle. But when his mother smiled at him, and then looked up musingly, he knew that she'd fix everything. She _always _did.

"Of course it's not true, dear. But, just to make sure, let's teach your Papa a lesson." A smile that could have no other purpose but to just show up the love of her life filled Belle's features, while Juliette, realizing that again, she was not needed, limped off in the hope of finding somewhere to sit.

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**Sorry! Super sorry for not updating in forever; it's been a crazy few weeks for me since school started back up after winter break! I haven't fallen off the face of the planet, and I am still going to finish this story, so don't worry. Please review! :) **

**(Also, for those following it, I updated my TLM story 2!) **


	17. A Picture is Worth a Thousand Thoughts

If a picture is worth a thousand words, than the picturesque scene out in the garden must have been worth a million.

There, standing in the garden, was the large father, who had one snowball hidden behind his back, and another holding out a snowball in front of his young daughter. His young daughter had an excited expression on her young features as she reached out her hands to grab the snowball her father had made. She was wearing a fine, pink winter dress and matching cloak, while her father had on an expensive looking red cloak (with gold accents). Both father and daughter had a small lock of hair curled upon their foreheads, but from the looks on both their faces, neither of them minded much.

On the other side of the garden was a beautiful brunette woman; a mother. One of her arms held a baby, an equally beautiful girl, and the other arm was raised up, her hand slightly covering her mouth as she giggled. A small boy next to her wearing formal clothing excitedly jumped up and down, laughing fully. The woman was bedecked in jewels, and a rather expensive cloak trimmed with faux fur showed that she was a woman of means. And, as though this couldn't get any better, there was a snowball in mid flight, headed straight towards the father on the other side of the garden.

Yes, this was a beautiful scene, captured elegantly in one moment. A family at play, laughing, smiling, having a wonderful time with one another…it was just too perfect. Or was it?

If one cared enough to widen the picturesque scene a bit, then they'd be surprised to find that there wasn't only a family out in the garden. No, there someone else there, sitting on the steps that lead down to the snow; someone who looked out of place, as though they just didn't fit in to this picture, no matter how hard they tried. That someone was Juliette.

Being an older orphan girl, she'd realized years ago that she'd never fit into a family, such as this one beside her. Everyone who adopted orphans (which weren't many people to begin with) always wanted the same thing; babies, or young children. No one ever wanted young teenagers. Somehow, that pill had always been easier to swallow when Juliette had never _been_ around an actual family. When she'd never known what she was missing.

"D-Don't matter; d-don't need no o-one." Juliette mumbled to herself, her voice softer than the wind. No, she was a strong girl. She'd survived beatings from Master Brys, harsh seasons where she'd nearly died, countless illnesses that had each weakened her just a little bit more…she was a girl who didn't _need_ anyone to be there for her. So then how come seeing that family just act like a family suddenly bring tears to the girl's eyes?

Wiping them away quickly with the back of her sleeve, the girl pulled her knees closer to her chest and stared off into the distance. There was a distant emotion tugging at her heart, an emotion the girl had felt only a few times in her life before. Jealousy. She wanted what that family had; she wanted those feelings of joy, excitement, _happiness_, to waft through her like the smell of bread in a baker's shop. She wanted…she wanted to just _smile_ for once in her pathetic life, instead of spending all her time flinching and cowering.

Oh, but who was she kidding, Juliette thought to herself glumly. From the moment she'd arrived at the orphanage, her path in life had been set. She'd leave the orphanage when she became old enough, and then, since no one wanted a street rat working for them, she'd become the poor woman who slept in the alley. If she was lucky, she'd have a coin a day, and she could afford with that coin at least a little food. Of course, many girls in her predicament could always become harlots, selling themselves on the streets nightly, but that idea had never particularly appealed to Juliette. She might be destitute, but at least she had _some_ type of values.

"Hey, why the long face Juliette?" Chip wondered, jogging over to the girl and standing in front of her. His own features twisted into a frown, though he wasn't out of sadness. He just didn't like it when people looked so down in the dumps…_especially_ girls like Juliette.

"It's n-nothin'." Juliette kept her head low so that Chip couldn't see that she'd been crying, and so he couldn't see how her cheeks burned. She couldn't tell this nice boy that made her feel all…happy on in the inside about her problems. First of all, he'd never understand, and second, she didn't want to burden him with her problems. Her problems were her problems; it was her job to fix them, and that was that. She didn't need anyone helping her. After all…she was still a strong girl…right?

"Doesn't sound like nothing." Chip pointed out, his voice pleasantly frank towards this girl. Sitting beside her on the snowy steps, he managed a humorless, half grin towards the girl. "You know, my momma always says that talking to people is one of the best ways to help yourself."

Juliette sighed. "I-If you really w-wanna know…I'm just thinkin' 'bout what g-going to happen to me wh-when I leave…here." She couldn't exactly come right out and say that she was thinking about how hopeless a life of begging seemed after living here for only a month, though she sincerely wanted to. But…after all, Chip was a boy, and most of the male species could not be trusted. Not after what Master Brys…no, no, the girl's mind scolded itself, don't think about such horrible things. Not here, not now.

"When you leave? What, are you planning to go tomorrow?" Chip hadn't quite grasped the intensity of the situation yet (because he only knew bits and pieces about Juliette), and tried to make a light joke out of the heavy circumstances. From the solemn look the orphan girl gave him at that, he knew that his joke hadn't been a joke at all; it'd been somewhat of the truth.

"Are…_Are_ you planning to leave tomorrow?" Chip managed to croak out, suddenly feel his heart race in panic. Blood left his face, leaving him almost as pale as the orphan in front of him. He was absolutely terrified at the thought of Juliette leaving, though as to why, he couldn't understand.

"I...it de-depends." Juliette sighed again, turning her head away from Chip so that the boy wouldn't see her green eyes well up with tears. "B-Belle said I could s-stay as long as I needed to r-recover. And…I'm not sick no m-more so..."

"Yeah…I guess you're not sick…" Chip frowned, his brows furrowing in deep thought. "But, c'mon, you're still really weak, right? And you've still got a bad limp…Belle will probably _make_ you stay 'till your one hundred percent better. You know she's a big softie when it comes down to it." Chip gave a laugh, easily brushing off the subject now as though it was no more than just a thought. And it was…at least, for him.

"You d-don't get it." Juliette argued softly, sniffling and removing her tears with the back of her hand. For the first time in this conversation, Chip realized that she was actually _crying_. That made him straighten up even more. If Juliette was crying, then it had to be very serious. After all, the girl didn't seem to be a big crier…

"I stay, g-get lots better…t-then what happens next? I-I'm right back at the be-beginning." Pulling her knees closer than they already were to her chest, the orphan girl dug her nails into her skin to keep from sobbing. It was just that…well…she liked it here, and she wanted to stay. Her dreams of staying in the place for good seemed silly now that she really thought about it…after all, Belle hadn't promised anything, and she knew that dreams such as those were unrealistic. Even her dreams about holding a steady job and being able to afford a tiny cottage seemed so unmanageable.

"Oh. Right." Chip answered, deflated and frowning even harder now. He had to do something for Juliette, even if it was just figuring out a way for her to stay in the castle…wait a tic, that's it! "I have an idea!" The boy nearly shouted, causing Juliette to flinch horribly. Immediately, guilt swarmed over Chip, and he lowered his voice.

"Sorry, sorry! I forget that you're not used to everything." The boy apologized quickly, before hurrying on. "But I have a good idea, Juliette. Belle said you could stay as long as you needed to _recover_, right?" Seeing Juliette give a faint nod, and start to turn her hypnotic green eyes upon him, the boy tried to get the next part out in a rush. "Well, it's probably going to take a year or two for you to fully recover, and by then you'll be old enough to work, and you could just be a servant! You could still stay here!"

Juliette's green eyes opened widely. Could that really work? It sounded plausible…after all, with her bad foot, who knew when she'd be able to fully recover? And by the time her limp was manageable, she'd most likely be of age to work…yes, it _could_ happen. The girl's eyes lit up with hope once more, and she turned her body fully in the direction of Chip, the freckles on her face nearly dancing, though her lips didn't twitch into a smile.

"Your r-right! Thank you!" Juliette's voice couldn't have sounded more hopeful, though from the unsmiling lips, you'd have thought that there was something wrong with this girl. But that didn't bother Chip. He merely grinned enough for the both of them, his dark blue eyes doing a thousand jigs.

"No…problem…" Suddenly, things were changing between Chip and Juliette. Their bodies were starting to pull together, their expressions were softening, and their lips were starting to pucker out. It was a natural thing, a beautiful thing really, and though neither teenager knew exactly what was going on, they didn't have the heart to stop it. Not even Juliette. The girl and boy closed their eyes, their lips extended and almost reaching one anothe—

"CHIP! JULIETTE!" Screams echoed across the garden, and two small children raced over to where Juliette and Chip were seated. Both teens pulled away from each other almost immediately, Chip blushing, and Juliette cringing and blushing at the same time.

"Chip! Juliette! Mama said that we still have extra time before the party, so let's _play_." Ara's slightly bossy tone was heard first, as she pulled at Chip's arm to try and get the boy to stand up. "Come _on_!"

"Papa said that you have to—that you have to help me make a _fork_ Chip!" Alex giggled, considerably in better spirits than his sister due to his younger age. His sister, however, only huffed at his words.

"Not a _fork_ Alex, a _fort_." Arabella corrected, finally managing to get Chip to stand up. Thankfully, she didn't have to do the same for Juliette, because the orphan teen was already standing, with her cheeks still tinged pink from what had almost happened. She was ashamed that…whatever had just happened had almost happened. Well, it wouldn't almost happen again, the girl summarized…though, why did her heart seem to break at that idea?

"Ooh. A _fort_." Alex repeated, though not at all seeing the difference. Still, the little boy caught Chip's dark blue eyes and said with upmost seriousness, "You gotta help me make a _fort_."

"Do I _have_ to?" Chip groaned, sighing slightly at the idea of having to do anything with the young children. For some reason, they were obsessed with him…and he did not like that one bit. And not especially after they had just ruined what would have been his first kiss was a very attractive girl…

"_Yes_!" Both young children chanted together in unison, before Ara looked at Juliette. "And you too! We need a make a _big _fort, bigger than the castle!" Extending her arms, Ara showed just how big the fort needed to be to be bigger than the castle…which Juliette doubted was even one tenth the size of the castle where the king lived.

She could remember hearing once that it was so big that one could get lost just by stepping foot into a hallway. Good thing the girl wasn't at the castle, she mused silently to herself. This place was big, and old, and expensive, but to get lost just in a hallway must be torture.

"'K. I'll h-help." What else did she have to do, Juliette wondered. She had awhile to start Chip's 'recovery' plan, the pain in her leg had subsided some, and more than anything the girl wanted to be outside, instead of put on mandatory bed rest again. And besides…if she helped the children…perhaps she could think out her feelings for this Chip boy. After all, it seemed as though, if her plan worked out, she'd be staying here with him for awhile…

"I guess me too." Chip put in his own voice, looking over at Juliette, and then quickly looking away. The girl was staring at the snow, and resting all her weight on one leg. He wondered, briefly, if she didn't like the way he'd acted towards her, almost ending up kissing her. Well, if she was helping the children, then he would too, and then maybe he could talk to her about it…

"I got my slingshot! Let's start!" What a slingshot would be useful for, only eight year old Arabella could know, but it was amusing none the less that she had one. So, with Alex babbling like a brook, Juliette quiet as a stream, Arabella rowdy as a river, and Chip as thoughtful as the sea, all four children set out to build a fort.

* * *

**Well, this chapter is dedicated to the artist and the fanart that originally gave me the idea of doing this fanfic. Unfortunately, she took the picture down off of DeviantArt because alot of her art was being used without her permission, so it's not up anymore. :( I don't think I did it justice in describing it, but, you know. I tried at least :)**

**Anyway...CHIP AND JULIETTE! Those two have some serious feelings they need to sort out, wouldn't you agree? I wonder what the future (if any) holds for these two...haha, now that I've planted a seed of doubt in your mind, you must really hate me. :D I'll update ASAP, because the story is going to get to a really, really, really good part for next chapter. I'd tell you what the next chapter was about...but then why would you have any reason to read it? Gotcha there, didn't I? Lol. **

**Updated my TLM fic also, for anyone who's following it. :D**

**REVIEW! **


	18. Adopted Horrors

"How's my birthday girl?" Clearly in a good mood, Vincent looked over his wife's shoulder with a smile at the baby girl resting in her mother's safe arms. Though, the minute the child caught sight of her father, her calm melted away into an expression of delight.

"Dah! Dah!" Jovianne cried out, starting to squirm in her mother's arms. Reaching out of two little arms at her father, the baby clearly expected the man to carry her…_immediately_. Vincent only grinned happily, extending a finger towards the baby, who wrapped her small hands around it and tugged playfully.

"_Our_ birthday girl is fine, no thanks to you." Belle answered, in a slightly annoyed voice. Using her one free hand, she tried to run her fingers through her now knotted brunette hair and quickly take out any little snowflakes that were starting to melt within it. "Jovi, stop squirming; I'm going to drop you!" A slight hint of panic took over the annoyance in Belle's voice as she quickly had to use her one free hand to balance the baby on her hip. The child was now out of reach of her father's finger, and put out by that, her brow started to scrunch together. She was going to start to throw a fit.

"Oh, she just wants her father." Vincent said with a chuckle, easily taking the baby out of his wife's arms, and into his own. The child brightened immediately. "You just want to play with Papa, instead of having to be carried _all_ _day long_ by Mama, don't you Jovi?" Smiling brightly at the child before him, Vincent carried on his conversation, as though the baby could actually understand him. "Tell Mama you want to play with me. Come on, tell her." Encouragingly, Vincent smiled wider at the baby, who reached out her tiny hand towards her father's loose locks.

"Guh!" Jovianne answered, ecstatic when she finally caught a handful of her father's hair in her hand. Vincent laughed.

"Close enough." As though the baby weighed no more than a feather, Vincent lifted the girl up to his shoulders, laughing himself when the baby laughed in glee. Making sure to have a firm grip on the child's backside so that she didn't fall, he let his daughter stay there for a few minutes. It wouldn't hurt for her to have a better view of the gardens.

Then, frowning slightly, he realized that he hadn't heard a peep out of his wife since he'd taken Jovianne away from her. Usually she was threatening him with death (which was more endearing than anything considering Belle's petite frame next to his larger one) if he didn't take the baby off of his shoulders at once. Though Belle wasn't exactly an overprotective parent, Vincent knew that all stakes were off when Jovianne was only a year old today.

"Belle? What are you doing?" Worried in just the slightest bit, Vincent turned his head carefully (he didn't want Jovi to lose her grip on his hair and start flailing around) towards where his wife was looking at. Oh. She was watching the children.

Ara had taken charge of the entire fort operation, of course, and was trying to get Chip to help her make something. Chip, however, was lazily sprawled on the ground, and waving a dismissive hand towards Ara as though he was saying 'shoo fly, don't bother me'. Alex was explaining something to Juliette, who in turn, paid attention to the boy with rapt attention that he clearly liked. Her thin body shivered visibly underneath the cloak that she'd somehow obtained, but never once did the girl look away from Alex. She kept her full, undivided attention on him, wincing every now and then as surely a pain from somewhere in her body arose.

"Juliette must be running a fever; it's not even that cold." Belle finally spoke, her brown eyes trained only on the teenage orphan. The rest of her children she knew were safe. It was just that one girl that worried her. "I'll go tell her to get back to bed." Clearly resolved, Belle took a step forward, but Vincent quickly shot out a hand to grasp her wrist. Turning back around with both brows raised in question, the brunette beauty pursed out her lips as her eye flickered upwards to her baby on her husband's shoulders, though she didn't say a thing about it.

"Let her stay out for a little bit longer. The children are having fun with her." Wincing slightly as Jovi tugged a bit hard on his hair, Vincent easily lowered the baby back into his arms. Just as happy here as she was on her father's shoulders, the birthday girl snuggled deeply into his arms. Belle gave him an incredulous look at that. Vincent took on an air of defensiveness.

"What?" He wondered, his blue eyes searching for an answer in his wife's features. Belle just shook her head.

"Nothing. I just thought you didn't like Juliette." Belle said simply, turning her eyes away from her husband and scanning the area where the children had just been playing. Had she been more focused, she would have realized that Juliette had suddenly disappeared from this group of children.

"I don't." Vincent said simply, making Belle turn around quickly, as though she had whiplash. But how could his wife think that he _liked_ this girl? She was strange, right down her very last freckle. She was most likely running a fever out there, and yet, she didn't even complain about it. She was freezing cold, but she still kept her focus on whatever a four year old was saying. And, to top it all off, she was a runaway orphan! If that didn't say suspicious, as in, the work of the enchantress, then he didn't know what it said.

"But," Here the man paused, trying to make sure that he drove his point home without a fight with his wife. "When she's gone tomorrow, the children will miss her. At least let her stay out a little bit longer, for their sake." Noticing that Belle gave a slight flinch at his words that Juliette would be gone tomorrow, Vincent was surprised when no fight from Belle arose. Huh. Maybe she was starting to realize how strange that girl was, and how she had, no, needed to go back to where she came from.

"Actually…" Belle trailed off, biting her pinky nail unsurely as she tried to get a hold of the anger and pain that burned inside of her. "Vincent, I was thinking. Juliette has to be around fourteen, maybe even fifteen, right? Well…in about three years, she'll be eighteen; she'll be an adult. So…" Why was this so hard for Belle to say? Why were these thoughts, the one's she'd been entertaining for the past few days, so hard to speak aloud to the man whom she'd saved from certain death, once upon a time.

"So…?" Vincent trailed off himself, prodding his wife to speak whatever she had to say. Belle took in a breath, swallowing her saliva, straightening herself up, and then looking at Vincent with clear brown eyes.

"So…I was thinking; if we adopt her now, then we wouldn't really even have to do that much parenting, since she'd be gone in a few years anyhow." Belle said this in the calmest voice she could muster, a voice that would imply a life-changing decision for more than one person was not going to happen. She looked at her husband straight into his blue eyes, and for the first time in years, and years of marriage, a cold shiver ran down her spine. He looked like…like…like a beast.

"No." Vincent said, in the calmest voice he could muster under the circumstances, though 'calm' to him was a mere growl. "Absolutely not, Belle." Belle, unable to give up, immediately gathered up all her courage and scowled at her husband. Little Jovi, who'd been sleeping, started to stir in her Papa's arms, though a few mumbled words from her father's deep voice immediately soothed her back into sleep.

"Well, why not? Give me one good reason why we can't take Juliette in!" Belle's voice was close to a blowing-a-gasket mad, which suited the brunette just fine because she was absolutely furious. If she'd been paying any attention to everything around her, she would've realized that there'd been the sound of a foot sinking into the snow, and then a dragging sound that had come right up behind her and Vincent right before she'd started that last sentence.

"One? I'll give you four!" Vincent snapped, anger flashing in his eyes. "One, she's a runaway, two, she's an orphan, three, I'm not a damn orphanage, and four, she's an illiterate _idiot_! You wanted one reason Belle? Well, I just gave you _four_!" Vincent's voice rose to a yell, and the part of his mind that wasn't full of fury made him realize that baby Jovi was starting to whimper in his arms.

"Well, what gives you the right to say _any _of that or deny poor Juliette a chance at a better life?" Belle near screeched, her brown eyes burning like liquid fire. Her own anger, when pushed to the near limits, could be just as terrifying as Vincent's when she wanted it to be. Her fists balled up, her chest heaved in and out, and anyone who had the unfortunate chance to cross paths with her at that moment would've found themselves knocked out cold.

"The right? The right?" Vincent roared, his fury pushed far beyond its limits now. His brain shut down completely; no reasonable thoughts entered his mind. The only thoughts that were in his mind were ones that could be traced back to years, and years, and years before. "What gives me right is that I'm the damn _**KING**_! I can do whatever the hell I want, because this is _my_ castle, _my_ kingdom, and you are _my_ subject. And you know what? So is that orphan brat! Tomorrow I'm sending her to the most isolated corner of the world, and she's staying there for the rest of her life! She's not going to be a problem in my life anymore, and that's my final say on this subject! That's it! Do you understand that Belle? This subject is _**OVER**_!" Vincent roared so loudly that anywhere in the world they would have been able to hear him. But now, without quite realizing it yet, he'd dug himself into a hole that he wouldn't be able to dig himself out of for awhile.

Still furious, but unable to look at his wife, Vincent turned his head sharply in the direction of where that orphan had been with his children. But she wasn't there any longer. Actually…none of the children were.

Instead, there was just Chip, standing straight and tall. The boy was also biting his lip, trying hard to stop a swell of anger and tears that he suddenly felt rise up in him. Like an older, protective brother, his arms shielded two small bodies behind him. Two small bodies that were trembling, and poking out their small heads from behind Chip, scared to death of the man they knew as Papa. Those two small bodies were his children. Vincent's children were terrified of him.

His fury starting to fade quickly, Vincent snapped his head in the direction of his beauty, his Belle, trying to see if all this had been a dream. It hadn't been. His wife stood up proudly, her chin kept up in a defiant way. But her eyes were swimming in tears, her bottom lip wobbled slightly, and the way she quickly extracted her now crying baby from Vincent's vice like grip was evidence enough that she was extremely hurt.

And then Vincent realized that no one was looking directly at him. Rather, they were looking past him. There was something, or someone, behind him. Snapping his head in that direction now, he felt his jaw unable to drop because he was just that much shock. The person took a small step forward, their foot dragging behind them in a horrible limp—a limp that, until now, Vincent had never even noticed. The person had their head bowed low, but when they finally lifted their head, a bomb could have been dropped from the sky, landed at his feet, blown him away, and he wouldn't have reacted.

There, right behind him, was Juliette. And she'd heard everything.

* * *

**Ahhhh! Vincent even terrified ME during this chapter! I was half expecting fangs and claws to just morph out of him! Well, no, I wasn't, but you get the picture. **

**So, a quick recap of the chapter, in the beginging, Vincent was all 'la la la, I'm a good daddy, la la la'. I wanted you guys to see that he's not a bad person; he's just a bit mixed up at the moment in his views. Well, very mixed up, but again, you get the picture! And then, he and Belle get into that arguement, and we all know he has a slight temper (very slight, hardly noticeable ;) temper), and things with him and Belle just go on and on and on, until WHAM! Atom bomb blows out of his mouth! And then everyone is looking at him in shame, and then he looks behind him, and wouldn't you know it, it's Juliette. Poor girl. You'll see more into her thoughts next chapter, so please, stick around. I mean, come on. Two chapters, in two days. I should get an award for best come back, right? Right? Oh, you know what, forget you guys! :P **

**Please review! Also (as always, if you guys haven't realized it by now -_-) I updated my TLM story too, so for anyone following it, you should go check out the new update. Adieu (sp?)!**


	19. Tearful Burdens

Juliette had become an orphan through abandonment. When she'd been about knee high, the oldest child that still remembered and still _remained_ at the orphanage had told her the story.

It'd been a nice winter night. No storms, no temperature drops, nothing vaguely important. Someone during the night placed a baby on the steps of the orphanage. The baby was still wet from birth, and didn't even have a pathetic covering wrapped around it. Master Bry's didn't like babies, but since he ran an orphanage he was forced to allow them to come in. Usually they were months old by the time someone came by and handed them up, or worse, abandoned them. Juliette was the only baby, in the existence of the orphanage, to be given up just minutes after she was born.

She'd been a burden on someone, and they wanted her gone so bad that they had sent her to a form of hell; an orphanage. Since the time Juliette had heard that story, the girl had made a promise to herself; never again would she be a burden on someone else. And the girl, surprisingly, had managed to keep her promise.

Until now.

"K-K-King?" The green eyes of the freckled orphan grew wide, starting to fill with tears that she refused to cry. She didn't even bother keeping her chin up and looking defiant; what was the point? Wasn't it obvious how the man's words had cut her like a sharp knife?

Taking in a shaky deep breath through her nose, the girl looked closer at the man, and felt her heart drop to her stomach in mortification. And then her cheeks joined her heart when she felt her mind flash back to a small portrait hung awkwardly in the orphanage. It was a portrait of the king, when he'd been a younger man, the prince back then, with a haughty expression and these eyes that seemed to look straight through your very soul. That incredible shade of blue that was nearly impossible to match, those handsome features… Of course, the man Juliette was now looking at was older, and his face had matured since that old portrait had been done, but it was him alright.

This was the king. _Her_ king. Belle's husband. Arabella, Alexander, and Jovianne's father. So then that must mean that… Looking quickly at Alex and Ara, and then at Belle, horror took the place of embarrassment on Juliette's young, teenage features.

"O-Oh…" The teen choked up, her bottom lip starting to quiver even faster now. Her eyes watered even further, and one shaking hand pressed against her mouth at what she had just figured out. She hadn't been staying in some noble's home…she'd been staying at the castle. _The_ castle. She, a miserable orphan, had rubbed elbows with the Queen, the princesses, the prince…and she'd even been in the presence of the king himself…oh dear god….

"Juliette—" Belle said desperately, reaching out a hand to the shaking—or was she shivering?—teen. But the moment her fingers brushed against the girl's arm, the teen stumbled back as though Belle had just infected her. The only thing the Queen could do was stand there, with her own brown eyes watered, and stare pleadingly at Juliette to understand. In the distance, Alex and Ara whimpered, Jovianne let out a feeble cry, and Chip stared at the ground, unable to look Juliette in the eye.

"And I…pro-pro-_problem_…" Horrified and mortified all in one now, Juliette shook with silent—most likely hysterical—sobs. 'Problem' was just another word for burden. She'd broken her promise. And she'd broken it in the castle of the king. _The_ king.

Shaking her head once or twice as she tried to fight her emotions, the girl looked up at Vincent with the most pathetic expression in the world. Vincent felt his anger completely dissolve, and all he could do was stare straight at orphan girl. His mouth was agape; he was horrified that he'd said such things out loud. He tried to say something, _anything_ to assuage the situation, but nothing came out of his mouth. He could only dumbly look at Juliette with a slack jawed expression, which didn't help the girl much.

"Y-Your maj-jesty." Her voice cracking, Juliette hurriedly lowered her head and tried to dip into a pitiful curtsey that a small child had once taught her at the orphanage. She was supposed to gracefully cross one leg behind the other, and then lower her knees in a respectful manner. But the girl's knees shook fiercely in the fear of having been a burden on the king, and her bad leg pained her to the point that the girl could no longer support any weight on it. Falling to her knees mid-curtsey, the girl let out a mournful sob, and wrapped her too-thin arms around her tiny frame.

No one stepped forward. No one said a word. Ara and Alex still hid behind Chip, peeking out every now and then to see a destitute teen crying her poor eyes out on the snow, but not brave enough to go up to her and ask why. Chip was just as baffled as Ara and Alex about Juliette's tears, which seemed like too much for what Vincent had just said to her. Still, he knew that by getting near the girl, he'd probably just make her feel worse. So he stood where he was, letting a single tear course down his cheek for Juliette.

Vincent was in a stunned/paralyzed state still, his eyes staring at the girl, but his mind making no connection as to what to do. Belle, who was holding a softly crying Jovi, fought back her own tears for Juliette. If she hadn't been so stubborn, and pushed for the teen to stay, Vincent would have never lost his temper and said such horrible things. This was all her fault, and all she could do was watch it.

Well, at least she could watch it, but she could watch it and be proactive at the same time. Crossing the space between her and Juliette with only three short steps, the woman was just about to kneel down and comfort the girl, when the teen looked up at her first.

Devastated. Crestfallen. Betrayed. These are all words that Belle had read in countless novels where the main character has their heart broken. Only, this wasn't one of her fantasies. This was reality. This was an orphan girl who just heard some awful things, and then been forced to realize that any remote chance of a stable, happy life, was to be ripped away from her without even a good explanation. This was a teenager that soon would have to beg on her knees just for a spare coin or two so that she may buy a piece of bread. This was someone who'd never had a chance.

"I-I'm…" Hiccupping from the sobs that racked her body, Juliette shakily managed to get up to her feet, and stumble backwards. Far away from the hand that Belle reached out towards her. No, she didn't need any more help. Hadn't all this 'help' been the cause of these peoples' problems in the first place? If she wasn't here, and if Belle hadn't been helping her, wouldn't this just be another normal, happy, _royal_ family that was oblivious to the plights of the sick and needy? Well, wouldn't it?

It was as though a light just got flicked on in Juliette's head at those thoughts. Of course! There was still a chance she could make this all better, still a chance that she could give this family a chance at happiness once more. After all, no matter what the king had said of her, this _was_ still a family. A family that didn't deserve the burden of having to support an uneducated, runaway orphan; it just wasn't fair to them. The king was right. Juliette was just a pesky problem. A burden. She'd always been, and always would be.

Actually, what was surprising is that he hadn't sent her away to the most isolated part of the world already. She certainly would have done so by now. That being said, the girl actually _owed_ the king for being generous in allowing her to stay for longer than she should have been. She was indebted to him in more ways than one. And what better way to make up her debt to him than to remove the biggest obstacle in his life right now? Herself.

Not even bothering to look at Chip, or Belle, or the children, or, oh goodness, the freaking _king_, Juliette managed to limp off in the direction of the castle. Though it wasn't obvious, the girl had just managed to stop crying, and her sobs were starting to disappear. She had a plan.

Vincent managed to look away from his wife's expression of 'how could you' his children's terrified glances, Chip's hurt glare, and just manage to focus on Juliette struggling to limp up the steps back into the palace. The only thought that managed to ring through his mind was one that, while not very important, made him feel like losing the fur and fangs meant nothing, for he was still a beast. He just stared at Juliette, and let this one thought bounce across his brain. It was kind of funny, in a sick way.

He'd never noticed Juliette had a limp.


	20. Monster Instincts

A soft footstep, and then a dragging noise outside of her room awoke Arabella in the middle of the night. The girl tried to ignore it at first, repositioning herself in bed and trying to get back to sleep, but it proved to be impossible. Letting an annoyed breath slip from in between her two front teeth, the child sat up and rubbed her eyes sleepily. Her door was cracked slightly open, so it wasn't hard for the girl to see a shadow pass in front of it.

_No one is ever awake this late_, Ara thought to herself with a yawn. Stretching out her arms for a second, the girl then threw the comforter off of herself and jumped out of bed. While most children would be terrified of a shadow passing in front of their door, Ara was more curious as to _what_ it was. Quietly, she tip-toed to her door and stuck her head outside of it.

Her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the hallway almost immediately, so she was able to determine what that shadow had been. And boy, did it surprise the girl.

It was Juliette. Ara was positively sure about it, more sure than she'd been in her entire eight years of life. Even though she was only looking at the girl from the back, there were just stand out things that made the child know that this _had_ to be the orphan girl. For one, no one that Arabella had ever seen or known was so skinny as Juliette, and two, well, who else had such a bad limp?

"Juliette!" Arabella whisper-shouted, trying to catch the older girl's attention. But Juliette didn't even seem to hear the child, and she kept right on limping down the hallway. Unable to hold herself any longer, Arabella tried again.

"_Jul_-_ie_-_tte_!" The child tried once more, a bit louder this time, but it was in vain because the orphan girl did not even turn around. She was either being too soft, or Juliette was deaf, Arabella reasoned. Or…or maybe it wasn't Juliette. Maybe it was an evil monster that had gone into Juliette's body and taken control of the nice girl! It made so much sense! No wonder the girl wasn't answering!

But how could an evil monster have taken over Juliette? The castle was so well guarded that not even Ara's Papa was afraid! Wait a second…her Papa…of course! When her Papa had said all those mean things about Juliette earlier, he must have made a monster come in! That's why Jovi's party was canceled at the last minute; the grownups knew that there was a monster and it was going to take over someone! Actually, now that she thought about it, her Mama _had_ muttered something about a beast when Ara had asked the woman about the party being canceled and Papa being so mean to Juliette.

So that must mean, beyond all reasonable doubts, that there was an evil monster controlling Juliette! Oh no! She had to do something _fast_. But to do anything, she'd need back up. Not any grownups, because they'd only get in the way and tell her to stay back when she was old enough to go wherever she wanted. And not Chip either, because he'd been acting kind of weird ever since her Papa had yelled at her Mama about Juliette. Then that only left two people for the job of being Arabella's backup, and she knew the two people who would fit the job perfectly.

Juliette felt snow crunch underneath her one barefoot, and then be dragged by her one booted bad foot. The dress she was wearing was nearly suffocating against her chest, and was so thin that she might as well have been naked. There were patches all over it, most of them falling off and revealing big holes. It had been ripped raggedly across the hemline before; now it only reached to her right knee, and left lower thigh. Her arms circled around her small body, shivering hard in the freezing night. Her teeth chattered loudly, and she could already feel exhaustion starting to creep up on her. But she wouldn't stop.

She had to put as much distance as she could between her and the castle. The farther away she was, the better off everyone would be. Oh sure, she was miserable. Sure, it was taking everything within her not to cry out in pain at every step she took. Sure, she felt like just dropping to the cold snow and sleeping. But she knew that she couldn't let any of those things take a hold of her. She had to keep walking, farther and farther until she was away from here.

It was funny, in a twisted way. Juliette had never been a bad child. She'd always been meek, obedient, and soft-spoken. Unlike most orphans, she'd never stolen a thing in her life. She followed the rules, even the ones that made no sense. She'd decided that if fate had handed her such a miserable life, than she'd get through it. She'd never made waves, and her dreams had only gone as far as one day being able to own a pathetic little cottage. She'd never been a bad child. So then how come all this had to happen to her?

Was it because she was stupid? Was it because someone hated her? Or was it because that fate wanted her to be miserable now, so in the future when even worse things came, she'd be prepared? Was that it? Was that why she'd gone to the castle, only to be leaving a month later, heartbroken and determined to never cause another problem?

So wrapped up in her own little world, Juliette merely brushed off any noise she heard as the regular sounds of the forest. Even when she thought she heard whispered, young voices shushing one another behind her, the girl shook it off. Those voices had sounded way to much like Ara, Alex, and Gemma's, though the teen knew that they were all probably in the castle, sleeping as children did, with no worries whatsoever. That was what your life was like when you lived in a grand place such as that.

For a moment, the girl wondered about the castle. Would anyone care that she was gone? Would anyone even bother to look for her? She knew none of that had happened at the orphanage. She was an orphan, society's lowest form of scum. She knew no one would've cared that she'd suddenly left. There was always another unwanted child to take her place. But…at the castle…she hadn't felt like that. She'd felt warm. Safe. Cared for. And even, in the strangest of times, she'd felt—

Stop it; the girl's mind scolded itself. There was no use thinking about what could happen, when she knew it never would. She'd only been given this life, so she would have to make the best of it. Or…rather, the best she could, considering what would most likely happen to her now.

She wouldn't return to the orphanage. Sure, there'd been a roof over her head, and sure, there'd been food (sometimes) in her stomach, but the price to pay for all that was too high. So now she could continue on from before, going to live on the streets, as though she'd never had a small detour at the castle. At least then she'd only have to depend on herself, and she'd be a burden on no one. The king and Belle would be happy again, as though she'd never entered their lives, and she? Well, she would most likely be _un_happy, but who cared? She was just Juliette. An orphan. A nobody. A—

There was a crunching sound just beyond Juliette in a thicket of trees. The girl stopped moving immediately, stiffening in fear at that sound. She saw that now, she was in a small clearing in the woods. How long and how far she'd gone, she could not say.

There was another crunching noise, and then three more identical ones. Juliette's already pale features went paler, and fear had her standing absolutely still. She swallowed hard, looking up at the bright, full moon for a moment before looking back at the thicket of trees. Primal instinct told her that something wasn't right here; something was very wrong. Heart pounding, the girl kept staring at the trees, hoping that her instinct was wrong.

Her instinct turned out to be right.


	21. Time to be Brave

Out of the trees sloped out a low growling beast of an animal, teeth baring and dark eyes seemingly staring into Juliette's very soul. The girl's breath hitched, and then started to come out more panicked. It was a large gray wolf; it dwarfed Juliette in size. It looked old, and it's bones were sticking out unhealthy through its side. The way the animal stared at her suddenly made the girl feel like she should runaway. Perhaps she could outrun the animal, even with her bad limp…

"Juliette?" A soft, scared voice asked. It came from behind the girl, and Juliette suddenly realized that she could hear the soft whimpers of young children behind her. She recognized these whimpers; hadn't she just heard them hours before?

Turning her head as slowly as possible, the freckled girl's green orbs went wide with alarm. Behind her, Gemma, Alex, and Ara were huddled together, fearfully staring at the wolf. They'd followed her, the orphan teen realized. They'd followed her all the way out here, and she'd been so wrapped up in her thoughts and so selfish that she hadn't thought to think that one of the children had seen her, or had tried to follow her. Stupid, stupid, stupid, the girl chastised herself.

The children all stared from the growling wolf to Juliette, shaking in fear. They were all still in their nightclothes, the only thing they'd thrown on over was their cloaks and winter boots. They looked so young out here, so childish in this one horrifying moment. The girl felt bad that the children would most likely see the wolf chase after her…or wait…how come the children hadn't taken their eyes off of the animal for about thirty seconds now?

Turning slowly back towards the old wolf, Juliette's green eyes went even wider than she'd thought they could go, and her breath started to come out panicked. She was having one of her fear attacks, the girl realized. She couldn't move, she was panicking, and she was so terrified that she thought she might die. The wolf was staring straight at the children, having dismissed Juliette as a possible target and realizing that the children would be easier to obtain. And the poor girl could do nothing about it.

She was frozen solid, stiff as a stone. Inwardly, she felt like she was trying to scream, but outwardly, she could make no moves. The wolf was going to get the children, and she was too scared to do a thing.

Maybe this was a good thing though. Maybe this was a sign that she, Juliette, was to live and that the king was finally going to feel as hurt as she had. After all, what worse pain than to lose something you held so dearly to your soul? All Juliette had to do was step away, and the wolf wouldn't even pay her any mind. If she did all this slowly, she'd be able to walk away with her life, and the king would only have himself to blame for this terrible misfortune. Looking back at the children, Juliette had already pre-decided to try and memorize their tiny faces and remember them and all the times they had together.

The way they'd sneak into her room and give her tiny treats. The way they could make every little thing into a game so that they could cheer up a sick Juliette. The way they asked her innocent questions, and never once teased her about her sorry predicament. Arabella, who was slightly bossy, but had a headstrong personality that you couldn't help but admire. Gemma, who was always up for a new game and kept her best friend Ara from floating off into the clouds. Alex, who was always excited and talking, even when it was hard to do. And these children were going to die.

Juliette felt her heart lurch. No! Those children hadn't done anything wrong. It was all her fault they were out here in the first place; had she not left, they would have never followed her. She had to do something to save them; they were just innocent victims of this entire situation. Juliette had no home, no family, no money, no food, and barely any clothes. But these children had all that and more. They had an actual future; she did not.

Forcing herself to push away all feelings of fear, Juliette turned away from the children and stared hard at the wolf. She stood tall, swallowing once to keep herself calm, and softly started to speak.

"D-Don't move." Juliette warned the children, keeping her eyes trained on the old wolf who was now starting to lick his lips in anticipation. His eyes had already locked onto the smallest of the children, Alex. The child who was most whimpering in fear.

"Juliette…I'm scared." Arabella whispered, her heart pounding and her arms hugging Gemma and Alex at the same time. Was the beast that had taken control of Juliette gone, or was that wolf the beast that had been inside of her? Either way, the animal did not look friendly. In fact, it looked downright homicidal.

"D-Don't be scared. Be c-calm." Juliette answered her lips barely moving. The wolf as already starting to lower into position to attack, his old bones poking out of his flesh as he did so. He was starving. And Alex was to be his prey. "W-when the wolf j-jumps, runaway. Go b-back home and d-don't come b-back." Juliette did not know much about animals, but she did know about being hungry.

She knew that when she was starving, she would take anything she could get. The first thing that popped across her view, she would snatch up and eat without a moment's hesitation. And that was what she had to do with this wolf. He was old, he had most likely been abandoned by his other wolf friends, and he was hungry. He wouldn't go after Alex when he saw that Juliette was trying to runaway.

"B-But…" Ara trailed off, the only one of the children still managing to keep a conversation going on even while she was in the face of near death.

"J-Just do it." There was an almost begging note in Juliette's voice, as though she was trying to make sure that Ara and the other children would not wait around. There was no telling what that wolf could do if it was hungry enough.

"But Juliette…" Ara continued, swallowing in fear. But Juliette had stopped listening to her.

The orphaned teen was now staring at the wolf, who was just about to make his jump. She gave a soft breath; she couldn't believe she was really going to do this. She, the girl who was terrified of her own shadow, was going to let a wolf attack her. Swallowing once more, Juliette took her eyes off of the wolf and tried to run.

One leg was exhausted from walking so long, and the other leg was a horrible limp. The girl only made it two or three steps before she felt something slam into her. It felt worse than a cane, worse than anything the girl had ever felt before. She felt something crunch underneath her, and immediately a horrible pain shot through her bad leg. Juliette tried desperately to cry out, but all the air had been knocked out of her. She was on the ground, nearly in tears already, squirming as primal instinct told her to do. Swinging one arm wildly, the girl could hardly see a thing; there was snow in her eyes, and all she could feel was the heavy animal against her. It snarled and growled, baring it's teeth from what Juliette could see. The girl's arm finally made contact with something, the wolf's snout. She pushed against it, trying to keep the animal from coming to close to her face. It was a natural instinct to protect herself like this.

And then she felt it.

It's hard to explain 'it' exactly. She'd thought that awful pain her leg was horrible, she thought Master Bry's canning techniques were something to hide from, but never in her life had Juliette thought that an animal sinking it's teeth into your skin, and crunching through your bones could hurt so much. The pain in her hand suddenly felt worse than anything she'd ever felt in her entire life, and it nearly made the girl pass out from the pain. She felt the wolf scratch at her, ripping apart her rags, and then she felt it sink it's teeth into her again. This time, the animal decided to bite into the place where Juliette's neck attached to the rest of her body. The girl was in too much pain to even scream; she just let out moans of pain, wishing, praying, and hoping that she could just die already. Death would be a relief from all this pain.

Ara, Alex, and Gemma had watched Juliette go down. They had watched the wolf bite through her hand as though it was clay, use it's sharp nails to tear wounds into the girl's skin, and then sink it's teeth into her once again. They had seen all that, and they were horrified.

"Juliette!" Alex cried out finally, breaking the stunned silence between the children. The boy only took one step in the snow before he was roughly pulled back by his older sister.

"Alex, the wolf'll eat you too if you runaway!" The girl said in an urgent tone, her chest heaving up and down and tears starting to spill from her eyes. She was finally crying, along with an already-bawling Gemma, and pathetic whimpering Alex. "We have to go back home; Juliette said so." Ara decided to follow out on the teen's wishes, looking over at the girl with a quivering lip. The wolf was really doing a number on her, and all Ara could do was stand and watch. She was too small to do anything else. "Let's go." Roughly grabbing her little brother's hand, the princess tried to do the same with Gemma, but the other girl would have none of it.

"_Non_!" Gemma shouted at her friend, refusing to leave. Tearing her hand away from Ara, the small girl looked at Juliette and heaved another sob. "_Nous avons pour l'aider!_ We have to help her!" Gemma shouted, her sobs and anger mixing into one. Arabella suddenly looked anything but the group leader at the moment, torn between what her friend was saying, and what Juliette had said. In the end, it was only one look at Juliette that made up the girl's mind.

"Okay, let's help Juliette!" Ara declared, before her shoulders slumped as she realized something. "But how are _we_ gonna—"

"Ara! Look at that—Look at that branch!" Excitement coursed through Alex at the moment, but it was a different kind of excitement that he was used too. Usually, his excitement came from happiness. At this moment, his excitement came from the fear to help his friend. "See it? It's cracked! It's gonna—It's gonna break!" Gemma's eyes grew wide as she realized what the prince was saying, and she quickly turned to Ara.

"Ara! If you use your _lance-pierres_, slingshot, then it can fall down and hit the wolf!" It was true. The branch was heavy with snow, and almost cracked off the tree at the moment. And, as an added bonus, the branch was right above the wolf's head. It would injure the wolf, and Juliette would be saved.

"Quick! Look for a rock that I can use!" Thankfully, Arabella did not go anywhere without a slingshot these days. Usually, she would have taken credit for this entire idea, but at this particular moment, that didn't even cross her mind. She looked up at Juliette for a moment, and her heart pounded so hard in her chest that she thought it might jump right out. The orphan girl was all covered in blood now, and nearly silent. Ara only had limited time before Juliette got even more hurt.

Dropping to her knees, along with Alex and Gemma, for the first time the children all worked together. Their hands pushed away feet of snow, digging for even a pebble. A minute passed. Another minute after that passed. And then another. Right when Arabella was just going to chuck her slingshot at the tree itself because she could not find a rock, Alex cried out.

"I found a big one!" The boy shouted, immediately handing it to his sister. Ara wasted no time in getting off of her knees and pulling out her slingshot from a cloak pocket. Gemma and Alex were silent as the young princess loaded the rock into the contraption that she'd made (with Chip's help). Closing one eye, sticking out her tongue, and then aiming to the spot where she thought the branch would most likely break off it hit by a rock, Ara could have sworn that she heard her heart pumping in her ears.

_Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thu_—

The rock flew from the slingshot and hit the branch perfectly. But it did nothing. The branch still stood on the side of the tree, as though mocking Arabella, Gemma, and Alex. All three children looked at one another with tears. They'd failed. They hadn't been able to save Juliette. Their friend was gonna get hurt, and it was all because—

_Crack. Crack. Crack. Craaaaaaaack_.

Suddenly, an awful cracking noise was heard throughout the small forest clearing. The branch started to droop further and further down, releasing more and more snow on top of the wolf. The animal looked confused for a moment, lifting up its head away from Juliette to investigate the branch. Sniffing at the air, the wolf only had the chance to look around the forest for a minute, before a heavy branch landed straight on his neck, and then rolled off of his body to the snowy ground.

The wolf collapsed on top of Juliette. Warm blood seeped from the animal's broken neck and spilled all over the girl, though it hardly mattered. The moment Juliette felt the wolf stop its attack on her was the moment the girl lost all consciousness. Her mind clouded over in pain, her eyes closed, and the girl slumped lifelessly against the snow.

She wasn't dead, but oh, did she wish to be.

* * *

**So I'm not dead everyone, yaay! That's good news, isn't it? Aren't you all happy? I am. I've been beating myself up for weeks for not writing or updating, butschool is really demanding. Luckily though, I'm on spring break now and finally have had time to write! You guys don't know how long i've been dying to write out this scene; it's been at least a good year. No really, I'm serious. For some reason, I just had this idea come to me one night, and I've been holding onto it since forever. Now I finally got to write it! But, the fun's not over yet. There's still a few more chapters I've been dying to write out for a really long time, so I'm just going to keep at this story until I can finally finish it. :)**

**This was originally one huge chaper, but I broke it down into three smaller ones so that everyone can follow the story a bit easier. I think it's just me, but I really can't stand when there's a fanfic that's like, a million words in one chapter. I don't know, it's kind of hard to read, don't you think? Anyway, please review all the chapters and tell me what you thought! I'll update asap! And for those who're following my TLM fic, it also got updated. :D Please review, even one word reviews are nice!**

**P.S. My high school put on a production of BATB a few weeks back, and I have to say, I was really impressed. They incorporated the movie AND the show into the production, which I found to be really nice. Now I want to go see the broadway show, but I think it went off broadway, oh, ten years or so ago! Lol :)**


	22. Fix It

"Mama! Mama, wake up!" Belle gave a soft groan in protest as she felt a tiny hands start shaking her. Honestly, she'd had a bad day. Didn't she deserve some time to rest?

"Ara, sweetie, Mama's tired…" Belle finally spoke, her voice thick with exhaustion. Her little daughter had probably just had a bad nightmare and wanted her mother to comfort her. She wasn't in the least bit concerned about…well, anything really.

"But Mama it's—!"

"Ara, be a good girl and go to bed." Belle yawned, sleepily adjusting herself once again in bed. "It was only a bad dream; it can't hurt you." Her voice thick with sleep again, Belle reached out an arm. She tried to find where he daughter's head was so that she could pat it, though she refused to even open her eyes. Finally, after a second or two, she felt Ara's hair. That was good enough for Belle. The woman started to sleepily pat it, until she felt something odd. Her fingers pulled something out of the little girl's hair, and though her eyes were still closed, she immediately knew what it was.

"You've got a twig in your hair." Belle muttered, almost unintelligibly in her sleepy state. And only two seconds later, she shot up in bed, her eyes wide and her heart pumping.

"You've got a _twig_ in your _hair_." Belle repeated, her eyes now locked onto her daughter. Any thought of sleeping was gone. Now is when her motherly instincts kicked in and her heart started to pound in fear. Hours before, she'd tucked a bathed and completely clean eight year old into bed. There was no way Ara could have gotten a twig in her hair unless…unless she'd been outside in the forest! Finally taking in the child's appearance, Belle gasped.

Before her was a scratched up Ara, leaves, twigs, snow flurries covering the child. Her small features were terrified and desperate; her eyes looked as though they'd been crying. This was her daughter, Belle knew, but this was not the same daughter she'd tucked into bed earlier. Something had happened, something bad, something that put Belle on motherly overdrive.

"Arabella, what happened?" Panicking already, Belle clutched at the child's shoulders as tightly as she could, hardly hearing the girl's small whimper of protest. Ara looked up at her panicked mother, and the girl just couldn't hold it back any longer. She threw herself against the woman and started to sob.

"A-A monster got Juliette, an-and it was making her leave and go to-to the forest. So I go-got Alex and Gemma, an-and we followed her. And then a wo-wolf came, and it-it was looking at Alex. So-So Juliette told me to ru-runaway when the wo-wolf jumped, and then she tried to ru-run and the wolf got her. And Gemma said we-we had to help her, so Alex f-found a rock, and I used my sl-slingshot and the branch fell down on the wolf. Th-then it started bleeding, and Juliette we-went to sleep. I-I said we had to c-come back and tell our Mama's, a-and we started running back. Alex and G-Gemma were right behind me, I sw-swear, but then they weren't, s-so I came back to tell you so you could f-fix it. You gotta help f-fix it Mama, you gotta help f-fix it!"

Ara bawled into her mother's chest, her small chest heaving in and out in sobs. She didn't know where her brother and best friend were. She didn't know if Juliette was going to be alright. All she knew was that she was horrified and terrified at the same time, and she just wanted her mother to hold her. She clutched harder against the woman, never wanting to let go. Her mother was one of the only people in the world that she could always feel completely safe with. No matter what.

Belle felt herself go numb. Her arms held her daughter, but her jaw hung open and her eyes stared straight ahead. Her son was lost in the forest. Gemma was lost in the forest. Juliette had been attacked by a wolf. Ara was bawling in fear. Her son was lost in the forest. Her son. Was lost. In the forest. With Gemma. And Juliette had been attacked by a wolf. A wave of horror suddenly washed over Belle as all this finally sunk in.

Adrenaline rushing, Belle did the only think she could think of at this moment.

"Vincent! Vincent, wake up!" Panicked shouts ripped from Belle's throat before she had a chance to do anything else. She could hear the sounds of her husband groggily waking up, and then moaning in pain as he felt a sharp ache somewhere along his body. That's what sleeping on a couch does you.

"Belle? What's the matter?" Disregarding her panicked tone, Vincent yawned and stretched out his arms. Were he and his wife speaking again? He should've known Belle couldn't last that long this time. Maybe she'd finally realized he was right, and she was going to apologize…

"The children. Are. Missing!" Belle hissed, jumping out of bed with Arabella still in her arms. Vincent only raised one brow; obviously Belle had the wrong idea. After all, Arabella was right there.

"What are you talking about?" Standing up, Vincent rolled back his shoulders in pain, and yawned once more. He stole a look at the clock then and gave a groan; it was five the bloody morning! This had better be something good…

Belle hardly looked at her husband as she flitted around her room, Ara still in her arms. Usually, Belle was not able to carry her daughter, but with such an adrenaline rush, she was able to do anything and everything.

"Here, let Ara explain. I'm going to the nursery to make sure." And just like that, Bele handed off a sobbing eight year old to her father, and then ran—yes, she actually _ran_—out of her room. Motherly terror filled her, and for the first time in her life, she was praying that all this had been a lie. Perhaps even a bad nightmare from her daughter.

The nursery wasn't too far from where the master bedroom was. Many monarchs of the past had spent the first few years of their lives in the large room, including Vincent himself. But that thought hardly passed Belle's mind. She was too focused on trying to find her son.

Pushing open the door to the nursery for a moment, Belle let her eyes adjust to the semi-dark room (Alex still had to use a nightlight). It took her all of two minutes to realize that Jovianne was sleeping peacefully, while Alex's bed was empty. Now even more terrified than before, Belle let her eyes scan the room. Every nook and cranny was studied, and before the woman knew it, she felt her heart sink to her stomach. Alex was not in here. And if Alex wasn't in here then that meant that Ara's story had been correct. The children had followed Juliette, seen the orphan girl be attacked by a wild animal, and then been separated as they ran back to the palace.

Juliette. The sudden urge to check the orphan girl's room was overwhelming to Belle. She had to see if the child was still in there. Maybe Alex had just wandered into another room. Perhaps that was what happened. But to be completely certain that nothing had happened, she had to check on Juliette. Belle knew that the girl would never just get up and go somewhere else in the palace. Either she was in her room, or she was seriously hurt out in the woods.

Raising the hem of her nightgown, Belle ran as fast as her to legs could carry her towards the guest wing of the palace. Her heart thumped in her chest, her breathing was frightened, and she could've sworn that there was a pounding noise in her ears. Finally reaching Juliette's room, Belle didn't hesitate to push the door open as far as it would go and step into the room.

But she found nothing.

It was as though no one had ever even been in this room. The bed was made. Out of place things had been put back in place. Not a single thing was missing. Everything was perfectly organized. The only hint that there was something wrong was a paper neatly folded and placed on the edge of the bed.

With a shaking hand, Belle reached out towards it. Her breathing was off, and her vision was starting to grow dim. Shakily, she unfolded the letter. Something was written on it, the woman realized after a second. Something in big, childish letters that proved the person was not used to writing. Swallowing once because she was fearing what the letter could say, Belle started to read.

**der bEl srE 4 lEvig widh owt gud bi bat i dohnt wan 2 b a burdan tEl Evry 1 gud bi 4 mE**

**JulEtE**

Belle clutched the letter in her hands, reading it over and over, trying to make sense out of all of this. This was Juliette's handwriting. She knew it couldn't be anyone else's. She remembered the girl having the most trouble writing her lower case e's. Belle gave a short, hard laugh as she reread the letter again. Juliette hadn't even spelled her name correctly. The girl who couldn't write her lower case e's, and couldn't spell her name properly had left. She'd left, and now she was somewhere in the forest, having been attacked by a wolf. And, to top all this off, Alex was lost in the forest.

Belle suddenly did the oddest thing. She'd always been one for reasoning, one who could remain calm, one who did not overreact. But when it came to her children, there was no limit as to how far she would go to keep them safe. And right now, they weren't safe. So Belle felt herself do the only thing that a mother could do in a time like this.

She screamed so loud that she awoke the entirety of the castle.

* * *

**Tell me what you think of the note that Juliette left; I was trying really hard to make it seem like a girl who's just learned to write (not to mention read) wrote it. Did I go overboard, or is it alright? :) **


	23. Sudden Safe Noises

Vincent trudged through the forest, determination set upon his handsome features. His lips were drawn into a taut line, and his eyes shifted from thing to thing all around him. The wind whipped at his face, forcing him to tie back his hair. Snow fell in droves, making his job harder than necessary. Still, he did not complain. Not even in the slightest. He knew all this was his fault.

He'd seen the look on his children's faces when he'd lost his temper with their mother. He couldn't get it out of his mind. That look of untold fear that each child had on their features, even his baby Jovi. They hadn't been scared of his words. They'd been terrified of _him_. And now look at where it had landed them.

Backtracking in his mind for a moment, Vincent thought about the moment he'd heard a bloodcurdling scream come from somewhere in the castle. He'd been in the master chamber, trying to calm down a hysterical Ara when that scream had erupted from someone's throat. He'd known exactly who it was too. Belle.

He hadn't even had time to contemplate it. One moment, he was trying to calm down his daughter, the next he was running full force towards where Belle was. He didn't even know how he'd known she was in the guest wing, he'd just _known_. He didn't even remember seeing anyone else in the guest room where Belle was, though there'd probably been at least ten people with his wife as well. Ara was still hysterical in his arms, sobbing and repeating over and over for someone to 'fix it'. Vincent hadn't even heard her. Just one look at Belle's crestfallen and horrified face had been enough.

He could remember suddenly pushing Arabella back towards her mother, and then running as fast as he possibly could towards the nursery. Belle's earlier words haunted his mind throughout the entire run, and even more so when he slammed the nursery door open. Jovianne was wailing, but his blue eyes had passed over the baby, knowing that she was fine, and all he looked at was Alex's empty bed.

_The children are missing. _

That thought still caused him to shudder. No parent wanted to hear that their child was somewhere that they did not know. A small army of a search party was searching the woods with him, trying to find the lost little prince, and apparently the servants' little daughter. The king tried hard not to think about what would happen if they couldn't find the children.

No, they would find them, Vincent thought. If not than the man didn't think he could return back to his wife and tell her the news. Belle would be out here searching with him under any other circumstances, he knew. It's just that Ara refused to let go of her mother, and there was no way the parents would endanger their child anymore then she'd already been.

He was searching alone. It was easier for him this way. He still had side effects from being a beast, like the sense of acute direction that all animals had. While he would have liked not to have any side effects from that horrible time in his life, the man had to admit that this was better than having fur or claws. A shudder went through his body at that. It's a good thing that he was no longer a ghastly child.

Suddenly there was a loud, long trumpeting noise that could be heard above all the snow falling, wind whipping, and snow crunching under his boots. Vincent paused for a moment, his heart nearly beating out of his chest. He pressed his eyes tightly together, just _hoping_…

Another long trumpeting noise immediately following the end of the first made the man sigh with relief and actually smile. Two long trumpeting noises meant that the children had been found and were safe. For a moment there, he'd thought it would only be one, which meant that there was trouble with the children. But there hadn't been one, there'd been two. Vincent could finally relax, even if it was just a little.

Alex was safe.

And as an added bonus, so was Gemma. So that meant that he could return back to the castle and everything would be fine. He wouldn't have to face Belle and tell her that Alex was still missing; he could rejoice with her that their boy had been found. It didn't matter if he was the crown prince or not; just the fact that he was Vincent's child and he was alright made the man feel a thousand times better than just a moment ago.

Turning left, Vincent kept the relieved, happy smile on his exhausted features as he headed back towards the castle. His son was alright, and he could get a good night's sleep. Then in the morning, he'd sleep in, have breakfast in bed, and spend the rest of the day playing with his children. The thought of all that made Vincent smile even wider, knowing full well that he could—

A sudden noise stopped Vincent in his tracks. It was a noise that he'd heard before, but he couldn't quite put his finger on. It was like a broken sob, but the person that it belonged to was in pain and desperate. But that was preposterous! Dawn was just barely cracking overhead; no one in their right mind would be out here! Surely he had to be imagining things…yes, that was probably it. He was just so exhausted that he was hearing things. The sooner he got back to the palace, the bette—

There it was again! Vincent paused a moment, before hearing the same noise again, and again, and again. So he _wasn't _imagining things. His brows pulling together in wonderment, the man slowly made his way around a few bare trees, until finally he came upon…a sight.

"What the…" Vincent muttered incoherently to himself, just a few feet away from the bloody body of a dead wolf. There was also a large indent in the snow, as though someone had just been laying there before. His blue eyes followed a trail of blood from the wolf, tracing its path through the snow. And then he saw a something had made bile rise up in his throat.


	24. Fine Memories

There was a young girl, most likely fourteen or fifteen, who was trying support herself using a bare tree. Well, maybe support was the wrong word. You see, the girl was uselessly scraping her hands against the bark, trying to find a small indent in it so that she could lift herself up.

She was covered in dark blood, and what seemed to be a dress before on her body now looked like a loose connection of rags just barely covering the girl's more feminine parts of her body. One of her legs was uselessly slumped on the snow, twisted at an odd angle. The other one looked barely strong enough to support all the girl's weight and it shook heavily. There were scratches all over the girl's exposed skin, and a large bite at the site where her neck met her upper body was already starting to look bad. One of her hands also looked like it'd been bitten, but that hand was pressed against the tree, the fingernails just barely gripping a piece of loose bark on the tree trunk. The girl shivered so heavily that you might have thought there was an earthquake beneath her feet. And there was her face.

Her mouth opened and closed in feeble, desperate sobs of pain. Her closed eyes were running with tears. Her hair, wild dark brown curls, was thrown about and crusted with drying blood. Freckles dotted her nose and a little of her cheeks, though it was hard to separate the blood splatters from the birthmarks. Then, for a moment her green eyes opened. There was a look of delirious pain in them, the green orbs looking so hurt and wondering as to how this could have happened.

This was Juliette, Vincent realized with horror. The girl must have been attacked by the wolf, somehow it must have died (could that branch laying near the dead animal have fallen on its neck?), and then the girl had dragged herself to the tree so that she could try to…to do something. He wasn't sure what she was trying to accomplish, but she was certainly trying to do it as best she could.

Strange. That's the one word that came to his mind when Vincent saw the girl struggle. Why wasn't she screaming for help? Why wasn't she just staying put and hoping that someone would find her? Why couldn't she just accept the fact that she was too small and weak to do _anything_?

That last thought pounded Vincent's mind like a hammer. He didn't know why, but for some reason it made his heart speed up and his brain scream in pain. Clutching at his head a moment, the man stumbled back a step or two and winced deeply. This was all just too weird. He should probably help the girl out.

He could already see it in his mind. Going up to the child, picking her up, taking her back to the castle where the doctor would see to her wounds, and then having more fights with Belle because _she_ wanted to keep the girl around, and Vincent wanted the girl gone. More times him and his wife would go to bed angry. More times his children would fear him. More times he'd wish the orphan had never come into his life.

That last thought sparked an idea in Vincent's mind.

Why _couldn't _he pretend that the last month had never happened? He could easily turn away, leave Juliette to fend for herself, and then have a relief filled night that _his _children were safe and sound. After all, the girl had been fending for herself until he'd come along just now; look, she'd even managed to kill a wolf. She would be fine out here, and if not…well…she was only an orphan. It's not like she had anyone who would miss her.

Again, that last thought caused Vincent's mind to flair with pain. What was going on with him? What was the problem? Gathering up his courage, the man looked back over at Juliette.

The girl had become a bit better in the one or two odd minutes that the king had looked away from her. Her arms were wrapped around the tree trunk now, tightly pressing herself against it. Her face was turned mostly away from the rough bark; only her cheek touched it. But the onslaught of sobs suddenly made Vincent's mind pound even harder, even louder! And then…

_Vincent looked down at himself. He was younger. He was eleven years old, and he was running as fast as he could through the dark forest. There was no full moon to guide him. He had no lantern to see a light in front of him. The night was just starting to break into dawn, and the snow was falling down hard from the sky. It was windy, it was freezing, and he was utterly alone. All he had were his thoughts, and himself. _

_He suddenly braked to a stop, his breathing ragged and his eyes burning from the side. He stumbled around a few steps, before finally wrapping his arms around a thick tree trunk, pressing his body against it, turning his face away from it, closing his eyes tightly, and sobbing. There was a desperate, pained edge to his sobs, something that made total, and at the same time, no sense to the boy. _

_He was a prince. He could just order someone to do something, and guess what, they had to do it. He could eat cake for all his meals for the rest of his life if he wanted to! He had every toy, every book, a castle, and every knick-knack available to him. He had _everything_. So why was he so miserable? _

_He wanted more. He was tired of the way the servants flinched when he yelled. He was tired of the way Mrs. Potts tried to soothe his temper by bribing him with his favorite cookies. He was tired of the way Cogsworth choked up when he had to deliver some news the boy wouldn't like. He was tired of the way Lumiere and Babette flirted, constantly flaunting their feelings in front of him._

_Why couldn't he have that? Why couldn't he have someone to say those three little words to him, even if they didn't mean it? Why couldn't someone just reprimand him when he became angry? Didn't they realize that his anger came from a source of instability, and he acted out because he was secretly craving a sense of structure? _

_He wasn't a spoiled, selfish, rotten child on the inside. In all actuality, there was someone nice, someone caring and considerate underneath his hostility. He was just like any other eleven year old boy. Except he wasn't. He was an orphan. _

_He'd been an orphan for years. He'd been 'that poor boy that has no mother or father' for so long. It barely even hurt him. Barely. It still stung. It still ached. He'd never had a chance. If someone had just given him the chance to be something more, someone more than the orphan prince, then he would have been a much better person then he was now. But no one had. Instead, they ignored the subject as though it was the plague. No one even tried to consider that adoption was an option for him. After all, he was eleven years old, and he was crippled with this temper. Who would want him? _

_No one, that's who, the boy thought miserably, resting his head against the tree for a moment as he sobbed. In the end, all he wanted was for someone to care. He wanted someone to understand that he was just a normal boy, leading a very bad life. Hugging the tree even tighter, the boy struggled to keep himself standing up through his tears. _

_He wasn't a brat. He lashed out, demanded, threw temper tantrums, and did so much more to see if maybe, just one time, someone would wrap their warm arms around him. He did it so that maybe they could hug him close, telling him that it was alright, that he needn't be so unhappy and act out because of it. Wiping away tears with the back of his hand, the boy hoarsely tried to console himself. _

"_I'm f-fine…" Vincent's pathetic whimper of a voice echoed in the forest. "I'm fine." He was trying to convince himself that things were alright, that he was alright. But in reality, he knew he would never be 'fine'. He was just a child, trying as hard as he could to survive through a life that had tossed just about every curve ball at him._

As suddenly as the memory had come on him, it went away. Vincent pressed a hand against his aching mind, his mouth agape and his brows starting to pull together. All those memories he'd tried so hard to repress, so hard to block out, were finally starting to come back onto him. Blinking rapidly in confusion, the man turned his head back towards Juliette.

Now the orphan girl looked like she'd made a trip to hell, and then had come back just to see him. How was it that in the span of a few minutes she managed to look even worse? Her pitiful, desperate, painful sobs were starting to turn into whimpers. Her eyes were about halfway open, staring blankly at a thick sheet of snow. She coughed heavily, her body so weak and small that it shook just from the effect. Blood flew out of her lips, and her breathing started to slow down. All Vincent could do was stare at her, dumbfounded at the memory that had just played in his mind.

And then, by chance, the girl's eyes shifted towards him and locked with his. Her eyelids pushed slightly upwards, and recognition flickered in them. The girl's chest heaved in, then out, then in heavily. She was sobbing again, Vincent realized within a moment. The girl's lips parted and a small split appeared between them. Vincent immediately cringed, waiting for the child to say something to the effect of what he'd said about her earlier.

"I'm…f-fine…" Juliette whispered, practically dragging her hands back up to the tree so that she could stand. Her broken and bitten hand screamed it pain as it was forced to move, but the girl didn't cry out. The part of her neck and upper body that had been bitten hurt oh so very much at any little movement, but the girl still didn't cry out. Her body ached from numerous scratches, but Juliette only let a silent tear drop. Using her nails, the girl tried to lift her body up. Her fingers were bloody and bruised.

Looking back at Vincent the girl saw that he was still just standing there. He hadn't moved an inch. She had to prove to him that she was able to stand up on her own, that she was able to take care of herself. If she didn't, than this had all been in vain. She had to help him, the girl's exhausted mind said. She had to help him by trying to put on a brave face, so that he could see that she was fine, and he could leave her be. He could go back to his family, and be happy. Far be Juliette to stand in the way of another person's happiness, even if that meant giving up much more than her own.

Swallowing deeply, the girl forced her green eyes to open more fully. She had full eye contact with him now. Her face morphed into a brave expression, and her chest heaved in silent sobs of pain.

"I'm…fine." The girl whispered again, blinking hard to keep herself from fainting. She could let unconsciousness take over her once the king was gone. But for right now, she had to pretend that she was alright. It was just a few scratches, nothing that bad.

And then Vincent felt his heart lurch in a feeling he had not felt in a long time; empathy.

He didn't hate the orphan girl, he suddenly realized. He didn't dislike her either. She was just an innocent child, caught up in a world full of adult things. He understood her pain. He knew that while physical wounds could heal, the most painful wound of all was the girl's emotions. Hadn't he felt just like that when he was a boy?

It felt as though a firework shot up in Vincent's mind and caused him to stare at the girl and shake his head. It's not her that he'd wanted to be rid of all this time, the man realized. It was _him_. Juliette's presence reminded him of a different time, a time that he had so carefully repressed from his life. She reminded him of being a pathetic orphan, lost, unknowing, and with absolutely no one to make things easier for himself. She reminded him of a time when he'd been cruel towards those around him, and as a result had earned the curse placed upon him.

An incredulous laugh left Vincent at that. All this time, he'd been worrying that the girl was some enchantress, or was someone to push away because she could ruin the delicate balance that was now his life. But this girl…this pathetic girl who was trying as hard as she could to be alright, for his sake, couldn't ruin the delicate balance of his life. Only _he_ could do that. He'd been trying to repress any mention of his past for so long, and when Juliette had entered his life, he'd tried so hard to fight it. The memories, the feelings, the _experiences_…he hadn't wanted to face all of it, and so he'd taken it out on an innocent girl. And now look at where that had put him.

While Vincent was immersed in his epiphany, Juliette was still struggling to stand up on two feet. She managed to do so with one leg, but her bad leg just would not budge. Pressing all her weight on her good leg for a moment, the girl took in a deep breath and forced her bad leg to stand up properly. Immediately, she wished she hadn't.

For the first time throughout this entire night, the freckled girl screamed until she could do so no more. Then, having used up the last of her energy, and feeling as though she'd just pushed her leg through liquid fire, the girl let go of the tree. She'd dragged herself all the way to the thing, and now, she could hold on no longer. She started falling…it was all going so slowly around her. Images blurred and then vanished altogether as her eyes rolled to the back of her head. The girl felt like vomiting, but she could only cough up a tablespoon of blood. Her body felt like it was attached to a thousand pound weight…it just kept falling, lower and lower…any second now Juliette felt that she was going to hit the ground. But the last thing the girl would remember before losing all consciousness was the odd feeling of never hitting the cold snow. Instead, she felt something strange manage to save her from falling down.

Delirious with pain, the girl thought that she'd been caught by warm, strong arms.

* * *

**So in honor of the royal wedding being today, I updated! I'm really getting into this story for some reason. I keep writing one chapter, and then having to break it up into like three smaller ones because it's just way too long. Is that weird? Hm. Oh well. Everyone thank Prince William and now Princess Catherine for getting married today because their the reason I updated. Plus, I'm just a sucker for a good love story. I woke up at four am to watch their wedding, and I have no complaints because it was great. So congrats you little royals you! **

**Sooo...Vincent. I know alot of you (all of you) have really hated him. But now you know why he did what he did! Now you have the 411, the DL, the big slice of cheese (do people even SAY this anymore?) on why he acted the way he did. Tell me what you think about him in your reviews! **

**Poor Juliette though, right? I feel so bad for her. I've been planning this scene in my mind for more than a year (yes, I'm weird like that) and I have to say, I did tear up when writing this. It's so sad! **

**Oh well. Please review, and if any of you are following my TLM story, that got updated too! **


	25. Til I Believe I'm Dead

Death. It's an odd feeling. It's like swimming in a pool of darkness, and no matter how many times you lift your head to breath, you're always sucked back in. It's like being dragged down to the depths of this dark ocean, and not being able to move any parts of your body to fight it off. It is far from the peaceful, eternal rest that most wish it to be. After all, Juliette should know.

Everything hurt. Her body throbbed with one of the most intense pains she'd ever felt in her life. She was in so much pain, but she was also very confused. Wasn't death supposed to be a painless thing? Wasn't death supposed to be when she went somewhere _happy_? Or at least, when she was supposed to _feel_ happy that she was no longer suffering? All this pain and confusion did not make the girl happy. So had her ideas about what death was supposed to be like been wrong all along?

Without warning, Juliette suddenly found her body wracking with heavy, hacking coughs that exited from her chapped lips. Each one seemed to be worse than the last, though it did relieve some of the build up in the girl's chest. No part of her deceased body seemed to be spared from the horrible cough; perhaps her soul was having a hard time coming out?

"Here, sit up." A lovely, soothing voice spoke in a soft tone towards…Juliette? The girl tried to do as the voice said, but found herself unable to even _move_. Well, of course she couldn't move. She was dead. Then suddenly, someone's hands—probably the person that had that voice—was lifting her up, and then settling her gently higher on the pillows.

"This isn't going to be pleasant, but it'll help get that cough of yours under control." The lovely voice muttered to itself, and almost immediately Juliette got a clear idea on who it was. It was Belle! But what was Belle doing here? Could the woman talk to the dead?

Or maybe…oh gosh, was Belle dead too? The idea nearly made the girl purge. Or perhaps what almost made her vomit was the cold utensil sliding through her slightly parted lips, and then dumping a bad tasting liquid onto her tongue. It took all Juliette had and more to swallow the liquid.

"There you go; good girl." The quiet praise was enough to send Juliette's mind in a tizzy. Praise? For swallowing a bad liquid? Perhaps she was just imagining Belle being here. Perhaps it was all in her mind, all a delusion. But just in case…

"…B-Belle?" Her voice, where was her voice? Juliette's eyes flew open, and a hand reached for her throat. But instead of the warmth of her fingers pressing against her skin, she felt…something cold. Something that limited the movement of her incredibly sore fingers. Shaking in fear, Juliette looked down, and saw something white wrapped around her arm. Something white, and hard. What was this, around her arm? A restraint? But…in death you didn't have restraints…did you? Looking up in horror, the girl's green eyes met with a pair of brown ones.

"What's wrong?" Not missing a beat, Belle let her eyes study the terrified girl. After only a moment, she realized what exactly was scaring Juliette. "It's a cast. To stabilize the fracture." Juliette's expression dropped from fear to confusion; Belle sighed. "The bones in your hand broke, so the doctor put your hand in a hard cast to make sure those bones heal." Shock registered on the orphan child's face, though Belle took it differently than from what Juliette was thinking.

"You were really hurt. Your left leg was almost completely shattered, your shoulder had an ugly bite, your hand was bitten almost all the way through, and I can't even _describe_ how many scratches and bruises you've managed to acquire. But I suppose it's better than what could have happened. That wolf could've killed you; you're rather lucky to come away from that attack the way you did." Belle sighed again, her brown eyes looking anywhere but at Juliette's green ones.

To put it lightly, Belle felt guilty.

She hadn't even given a thought as to how Juliette must have been feeling after hearing Vincent's views on her. She'd brushed it off a temporary setback; she'd explain to the girl in the morning the reason for everything. She hadn't thought that desperate, alone, frightened, and most importantly, hurt, the girl would try to leave. She should've known better. After all, she'd spent a month with the girl; she'd considered herself a role model for the child. Well, role models didn't just stand there, gaping like a fish while a teenage girl fell to her knees and sobbed pathetically.

"I…I'm…n-not dead?" There, her voice was starting to return to her, albeit hoarsely. Still, the sudden realization that she was not in fact dead was a blow to Juliette's conscious mind. How could that be though? That wolf had nearly finished her off, she'd dragged herself to that tree, and she remembered falling as unconsciousness took her. So then why was Belle implying that the girl could still be alive?

"What?" Now it was Belle's turn to be shocked. "Of course not! Why would you even think that you—"

A knock suddenly interrupted Belle's voice, and the woman turned towards the door in surprise. Who the devil would be knocking on Juliette's door, at this time? It was late in the evening; what could be so important that someone would come all the way to _this_ room?

Turning for a fraction of a second to look at Juliette, the woman decided to leave the girl be and answer the door. The orphan looked thunder stricken and pale, but not about to leave any time soon. Perhaps she just needed a moment to collect her thoughts.

Slowly, the door was opened, just enough so that Belle could see whomever it was that was standing there. She nearly dropped to the floor in her shock when she found that it wasn't just anyone behind the door. No, it was her husband. _Vincent _was here.

"What?" Her voice came out harsher than she had expected it to. Her heart cried out when she saw her beloved wince at her tone, before turning his worried eyes toward her.

"Ara is inconsolable. I've tried everything to get her to calm down but…" The hesitation in Vincent's voice was enough to make even Belle worry. "She doesn't want me anywhere near her. She just wants you." The pain was evident in Vincent's tone. He didn't like that his own daughter refused to be consoled by him, that even at eight years old she held a grudge against him for his cruel words. Even if she thought a monster had overtaken him, she still believed that he, being her Papa and therefore the strongest man alive, should have fought the monster off. Vincent didn't have the heart to tell the child that sometimes, even he couldn't prevent himself from giving into the monster.

"I'll be there in a little bit. Right now…" Biting her lip, Belle looked back over her shoulder at Juliette. Now the girl looked more like a zombie than a thunder stricken child. Her eyes were plastered straight forward, and her face was impossible to read. The queen feared for what was going on in the girl's head.

"Huh?" Vincent looked over his wife's head, and his gaze fell upon…an awake Juliette. "Oh." So the girl was once again awake. But she looked…odd. As though there were a thousand ideas running through her mind at once, and she couldn't handle all of it without looking like...well, the only way to truly explain it was that she looked like she was in a catatonic state.

"I'll be there in ten minutes, Vincent." Belle finally said, moving away from the door so that she could shut it. But the door would no longer move. No matter how many times she pushed against it, the door was not budging an inch. Looking up, the woman found out why.

Vincent was using one hand to keep the door in place. His lips twitched in faint amusement at Belle's wasted efforts, but the amusement was gone when he received a glare from his wife.

"Yes?" Her voice was harsh once again, and like before, Vincent had to wince. Neither he nor Belle had spoken much since his outburst on Jovianne's birthday. Sure, they were sleeping together again, but mostly because Alex and Ara had been plagued with night terrors, and they both steadfastly refused to sleep in a bed that did not inhabit both their parents. Besides a few words here and there to one another, the couple had thrown themselves into full parenting and working mode, as to avoid conversation between another. As you can imagine, tension was now at an all time high.

"I need to talk to the gir—Juliette. I need to talk to Juliette." Vincent made his voice firm and steady, though he felt anything but. What was he doing? Juliette probably hated him. He was the reason she'd gotten attacked by a wolf in the first place. He'd said horrible things about her person. And now he wanted to _talk_ to her? Sometimes, not even Vincent knew what his mind was thinking.

"I don't think this is the right time." Belle answered curtly, before pressing all her weight against the back of the door, trying to shut it. "She's very—ugh!—fragile right now and I don't want—urgh!—anything to happen to…would you please let go of this door?" By the end, Belle was annoyed to the point where she'd given up trying to push against the door. It wasn't working anyhow. Vincent only shook his head.

"Not until you let me speak with her." Counter arguments. Being raised by servants, and by that Vincent meant Lumiere, as a boy the now king had watched endlessly as the maitre'd and Cogsworth had battled it out, with Lumiere usually winning with a better counter argument. There'd been no one to study better than that fair haired former candelabra, Vincent mused to himself with an almost nostalgic smile.

"And what if I don't?" Raising herself to her full height (which was practically pathetic compared to Vincent's towering one), Belle pursed out her lips and put her hands on her hips. Her eyes narrowed murderously, but her heart did give a flutter or two when she saw Vincent's blue eyes sparkle with amusement. His eyes always did look bluer and more melt-worthy when they were happy.

"Then I'll stay here all night." Amusement crept into Vincent's tone at that, but it was just as soon gone as his features went serious. "Belle, I'm not asking for a lifetime. I'm not even asking for twenty minutes! All I want is ten minutes to talk to the girl. Ten minutes and then I'm gone." A slight growl rose in Vincent's now more serious tone, showing that he too, was growing frustrated of this charade. For a moment, he watched as Belle looked up him over. He kept his features as sincere as he could, and finally, the woman sighed. She dropped her annoyed stance and stepped aside.

"Five minutes, and if you make her cry, I swear to you Vincent, I will break every bone in your body. Every. Bone." Making her words as clear and precise as she could, Belle stepped aside even more to allow her husband to enter.


	26. To Please Everyone Except Me

Vincent's feet shuffled in, though he had no memory of telling them to do so. The door shut loudly behind him, making the man nearly jump out of his skin in startled state. From the corner of his eye, he caught Juliette come out of her state and flinch so hard that he was afraid she might have broken _another_ bone. But, from the other corner of his eye, he could see Belle. And there was a slight smirk on her features as her brown eyes flickered to him. That woman, Vincent swore in his mind, trying to keep himself from smiling.

"Juliette?" Belle's soft voice broke through Vincent's thoughts. He watched as his wife easily glided over to where the orphan teen was, and sitting on the side of the bed. Her gentle voice was a far cry from the annoyed one she'd just been using. "Sweetie, it was just the door. Nothing's going to hurt you." Slowly, Juliette's arms lowered from their position on her head. Her head raised up cautiously, green eyes searching around the room, before they fell upon Vincent. It would be lying to say the girl's pulse did not quicken at the very sight of him.

"…I-I tried…I really t-tried…sir. B-but…your right. I'm…a…a good f-for nuffin'…stupid or-orphan." Keeping her head low, Juliette made sure that she did not make any eye contact with the king. The _king_! The man who was running her country, the man who could easily sentence her to death for doing a headstand, the crème de la crème in the upper class, was in front of the orphan!

Vincent and Belle both blinked, before sharing a confused look with one another. Belle opened her mouth to speak, but her husband beat her to it.

"_What_ are you talking about?" It was Juliette's turn to blink now. Her head lifted up slowly, green eyes looking at the king, before hurrying back down to stare at her hands. Didn't he know? He was the king. How could he not? Was he just doing this to make the girl feel worse than she already did? That could be a possibility. Men were forever a cruel race.

"I…t-tried not to be a…a…p-problem no more for…you and Belle. But the wolf g-got me…and I couldn't…couldn't even d-die…right. I'm s-sorry." Juliette's voice was still considerably soft, unable to go much higher. And her words were spaced out, proving the fact that she was exhausted, but like always, she was pushing herself to her very limit. Tears stung her green eyes, though she refused to cry them. What good did crying do now?

"J-Juliette…you _wanted _to die?" Horrified, Belle turned her full attention on the girl, her features paling at just the thought. Juliette gave a thick, slight nod before a cough exited her lips.

"If I was…g-gone…there'd be no…fightin' 'bout m-me. You'd all b-be…happy." Juliette strained herself on that last word, forcing her lips to move and forcing her voice to pronounce it. That word…it cut the girl so deep that she was surprised her heart was still beating. Happy. She'd only ever caught fleeting glimpses of what that could be like for her; she'd seen more of it with the royal family. They deserved to be happy; they'd earned it. As for Juliette? Well, what was one miserable orphan? Just another lost soul in the world, that's what one miserable orphan was.

"So that's why you left. You wanted to please everyone else, but yourself." Belle managed to give a hollow, shaky laugh at that thought. All Juliette ever wanted to do was to please people. If someone asked the girl for her arm, she'd probably hand it over to them without complaint. She just did things to make others happy. But she never once tried to give herself the same chance.

"And what about the children? You purposely let yourself be attacked by a wolf—oh yes, I know _all _about that—so that they could be happy? Is that why you did it?" For reasons unknown to her, Belle just had to know. She had to know if this is why her Arabella and Alexander were safe with only a few cuts and bruises, while Juliette looked like she'd been trampled by a dozen horses.

"K-kind…of." Juliette whispered, not at all liking the pressing tone Belle used with her. "B-But…I did it too 'cause…'cause…it was my fault…they l-left. They f-followed…me. I'm s-sorry." Again, Juliette repeated her sorry's, still making sure that her head was low so no one could see her tears. The children could have gotten hurt because of her stupidity. It was a wonder that no one had thrown in a dungeon for that by now.

"It was your _entire _fault?" Vincent's halting voice asked, and Juliette acknowledged him with a slight, miserable nod. "Tell me, Juliette, did you wake the children and tell them to follow you?" Head shake. "Did you _know_ they were behind you?" Head shake. "Did you tell them to stay when the wolf would attack you?" Head shake. "Did you purposely walk away from the scene, let them be attacked, and never once look back?" For the last time, there was a head shake from Juliette. Her head was starting to tire from doing this.

"Juliette…I'm the one who owes you a sincere apology. For what I said. It was my fault that you left; had you not heard any of that, none of this," Here Vincent motioned towards the girl's injuries, "would have ever happened. I'm…I'm…" Vincent closed his eyes tightly and finally uttered those two words. "I'm sorry." It stung his pride and his ego, but it was worth it to help make a young girl understand his point.

"N-No…it's my fault." Juliette insisted, making Belle groan and bury her face in her hands. Of course the teen wouldn't just let this go. Of course she wouldn't; she was too selfless.

"How is this even _remotely_ your fault, dear?" Belle wondered in a tired voice, already at her wits end with this going-nowhere-conversation.

"'Cause…I'm an…or-orphan." Juliette acknowledged, letting her head rest down again. Vincent shook his head at the girl, taking a step closer to the bed in the process.

"That's not an excuse, Juliette." The man answered, his voice tender with emotion towards the girl in front of him. "I was an orphan once too you know; I still am, if you want to look at it from that perspective. I know what it's like."

"N-No you…don't." Juliette answered back, her voice softer than a wind chime on a windless day.

"Yes, I _do_." Vincent acknowledged with a slight growl in his voice. Juliette decided to leave the subject at that. There was no point in arguing with the king. He'd always win.

"B-Belle?" Belle looked up at the girl, who still didn't meet her gaze. Poor girl was probably dead tired, and yet, she still tried to speak. She pushed herself to the very edge, and never once did she complain.

"What honey?" Using sweet language, Belle hoped that she could possibly speed this all up and get Juliette back under the covers very soon. There was something that bugged her about the girl pushing herself so much, though she couldn't quite place her finger on it.

"C-Can I…I'm r-recovered. I…sh-should leave." Recovered? Belle studied the girl's appearance for a long moment. Lifting up Juliette's chin with her knuckle, the woman got a clearer picture.

Bruised, broken, and beaten, Juliette seemed like the least person to be asking to leave. There was no light in her green eyes; there was only weariness. Her skin was pale and her breathing was just a bit shallow. Her features were sunken in, no doubt because she'd barely eaten in the past few days. Bones jutted out from odd places in her skin, but those places were usually covered by a blanket of injuries. Her dark brown curls seemed limp; even the splattering of freckles across her nose and cheeks looked depressing. Her head was propped up on two pillows, at first just to stop her cough, but now because the girl could not sit up on her own. But the very worst part of all this was the girl's body language. Her body seemed to be screaming how miserable it was, how hopeless this entire situation was.

Belle sighed, slowly tucking back an errant curl behind Juliette's ear. The girl gave a light jump when she felt the warmth of the woman's skin brush against her cheek. The beautiful brunette woman almost cried. All the hard work she'd put into having a relationship with this girl, all the countless hours she'd spent helping the child learn to read, write, and even act like a teenager…suddenly it was all gone. She'd given it her all, and she'd failed.

Looking over at Vincent for a moment, the woman realized that he wasn't even paying attention to her. He seemed to be studying the child as well, his blue eyes intently trying to make contact with her green ones. But Juliette was having none of it. She kept her chin up for only a minute more, before letting it fall and staring back into her lap. Both adults sighed this time.

"I don't want to force you to do anything you don't feel comfortable with, Juliette." Belle's hesitant voice started, her brown eyes conveying her sincerity. Then she took in a shuddering breath, wincing at the mere thought of her next sentence. "But the streets are hardly a place for a young girl…so…" Belle broke off again, this time painfully as she didn't want to say this. She was dreading this. This went against every maternal instinct in her body. But who was she kidding?

Vincent was never going to want to adopt the child; after all, they had three beautiful, biological children of their own. If they wanted another, they _could_ have another. And even Belle was shaky on the whole 'adoption' idea. She liked it better than the option of Juliette being forced to beg on her knees for a coin, but it still wasn't a number one idea with her. After all…how could she be able to give a child that wasn't hers the same love and affection she gave her _own_ children? Or if Juliette broke a vase, how would she be able to discipline the girl without feeling horrible because, one, the girl wasn't her daughter to begin with, and two, she'd already gone through so much. Then there was the fact that Juliette was a teenager, a terrifying creature that had no type of set values and regularly gave their parents hell. With an infant, a little boy, and a self-proclaimed "big girl", a teenager would be the one that tips the scale and send everything into an avalanche.

"So if you really want to leave then…then you'll be sent back to the orphanage."

It's quite possible that all the oxygen left the room in that very moment. Vincent took in a sharp breath, turning his head quickly towards his wife in shock. Belle kept her eyes on her hands, breathing heavily and forcing herself not to cry. And poor Juliette started to shake so bad that the nearly hysterical dry sobs coming from her lips seemed like the icing on the cake.

"Belle, you're not really saying that—" Vincent's stunned tone had an almost hysterical edge to it. Send Juliette back to that orphanage? A week ago he would have been the person who'd already acquire a carriage to take her there that very night. But now? Now he couldn't even dream of letting the child leave the palace…especially when she looked like _this_. Maybe in two or three weeks, when she'd healed more, when she wasn't so…so…scary.

"Pl-Please…Master Brys…e-e'll…" Juliette's desperate plea nearly cut Belle's heart into pieces. But what could she really do? Without a proper adoption, the girl couldn't stay, and because she was too young to work, she couldn't be a servant. Maybe a different orphanage might be better (thought the woman doubted it) but the thing was that…that Juliette had grown up in that orphanage. No doubt she knew the children, she knew how to avoid beatings, and she knew how to find better food to eat. To send her to a different orphanage where she'd have to relearn all that might be even worse than sending her back to her old one.

"Cane you, I know." Belle finished the sentence for the girl lamely. She tried to keep her voice emotionless, but it was hard to do considering that her voice cracked on the last word.

"'E'll…c-cane me…an-and then…and th-then…" There was something in Juliette's tone that made both Vincent and Belle sharply look at the girl. For a second, they shared a look with one another, before looking back at the girl. In that one second they looked at one another, they were able to determine that neither of them had a clue as to what would happen _after _Juliette got caned. And if their instincts were right, it wouldn't be anything nice.

"Then what?" Vincent asked cautiously, his words measured and precise. But Juliette was through talking. Already she'd said too much. The girl bit her lip, and looked back down at her lap, trying hard to stop the dry sobs from overtaking her. She managed to do so, though her sobs became hacking coughs instead.

"Juliette…if there's something you're not telling us…if you do we may be able to help you. Please. Just say it." Belle's almost begging tone caught the orphan teen off guard. Did the woman really want her to say it that bad? But…if she did…then what may happen to her? Master Brys had sworn that he'd…and it wasn't like it was one of the best days of the girl's life that she'd like to relive. Still, looking at Belle's pleading chocolate brown eyes, and Vincent's concerned blue one's, the girl took a deep breath.

Maybe they _could_ help her if she spoke about it. Help her in such a way that she'd no longer have to go to the orphanage. Help her never go back to that place ever again in her life. While the girl was usually the very last person to call a favor of someone else…well, she might just have to do it in this case. At the very least, maybe if she told them they could tell her what had been going on. Or maybe they could make Master Brys leave orphans alone forever. That was the best thought of them all.

So, Juliette took in another deep breath…and started to speak.


	27. Illustrating Horrors

_Her heart pumped loudly. Her palms grew sweaty. Her green eyes widened just a bit more in fear. She was so hungry. Her stomach was growling again. She hadn't eaten in two days. And she was being denied food again for today, though you could hardly call it 'food'. She shouldn't be doing this. It was wrong. But she just wanted something to ease the pain in her stomach, even if that meant breaking the rules. _

_A pained cry coming from somewhere else made Juliette jump in fear. Without even thinking about it, the girl pushed open the door, ran inside, and then shut it quickly behind her. _

_Master Brys office. Many a toddler had wandered in here before, unknowing of the danger they were putting themselves in. Since they were so small, they usually only received a smack or two, nothing like the caning the older children endured. If Juliette was caught in here…the girl shuddered to even think about it. _

_Quickly, she surveyed her surroundings, hoping to find something that resembled food. She didn't. All she saw was the plain office, with a note and an open bag of money lying on top of the desk. Juliette disregarded the note; she couldn't read anyhow. But she did look at the money for one long moment, before sighing softly to herself. She knew where Master Brys had gotten that money from. _

_From dawn till after dusk, the girl, and the other orphans, slaved away making boots. They used their own feet for measurements, and then stich by stich they painstakingly made a tough boot that Master Brys sold to someone, who sold it to someone else, who sold it to someone else, and by then all of France (at least the poorer villages) was benefitting off of child labor. _

_Materials were scarce; Master Brys hardly bought enough to make a worthy boot, so the children were forced to use other alternatives. Scraps of their own clothing to cover a hole. Strands of their own hair as string. Anything remotely sharp for a needle. The younger children were put to work scrounging for materials so that they could hand up whatever they had found to the older children, who worked themselves so hard to meet Master Brys impossible deadlines. There were no breaks. There were no vacations. It was either work, or face the wrath of the Master. _

_Juliette suddenly ripped her gaze away from the bag of money. If she kept staring at it like that, then she'd start to acquire ideas, and most of her ideas were stupid. But then again, Master Brys always said that it wasn't a girl's place to think, so perhaps that was why. Besides, the girl reasoned with herself, she had that whole franc she'd gotten from begging yesterday morning. Someone had just thrown it out the window of a carriage at her, and the girl had quickly hidden it in her dress sleeve in her glee. It was so rare that she ever got more than a glob of spit from people when she begged. _

_Shaking her dark curls out, the girl quickly changed her thoughts. There was no visible food in Master Brys office, but perhaps there was some that was hidden. Could they be behind the pathetic collection of books? Maybe. There was no telling where someone like Master Brys would hide food. _

_Taking one step, and the dragging her foot behind her, Juliette shuffled the three books around, hoping that a small piece of candy might fall out. But nothing did. Had she been saner of mind, the girl would have realized how ridiculous this all was. After all, looking for candy in a book has got to be pretty crazy. Hunger, though, made the girl's mind muddled with only one thought; find food, and eat it. _

_The girl picked up one of the books at random, curiously squinting at the oddly shaped symbols that were supposedly letters. She had no clue what any of them meant or said, and holding the book in her hand wasn't making her feel any smarter. So, with a sigh, the girl decided to put back the volume. Only, when she was about to, something caught her eye. It was a darker page in the book, standing out from all the rest. It could be…it could be an illustration! _

_Now Juliette's heart started to beat quickly with immense incredulousness. An illustration! Perhaps if she saw the illustration, it would tell her something about the book; maybe it would even tell her where to find food! Oh, joy! The girl opened the book up again, starting to flip the pages so fast that she could hardly—_

_SLAM! _

"_What are _you_ doing in my office?" Master Brys furious voice made Juliette immediately gasp, drop the book, and then cower in fear. Her body shook so hard that she had to keep a hand on the bookshelf to keep herself from falling over. _

"_I-I…" _

_Master Brys gave the girl a scornful look, and hobbled with the cane in his hand towards the girl. His salt and pepper hair contrasted with the high sharp cheekbones that stuck out through his face. His wrinkles gave him an even fiercer look, and his brown eyes were out for murder. He leaned down and grabbed the book; it was one of those mandated ones that every director of orphanages had to have on proper childcare, by order of the king. Brys doubted that the girl had any clue as to what it was anyhow, so he wasn't worried. _

_Then suddenly, he remembered what he'd left out in the open on his desk. His rather large money sack, with money almost pouring out of it. Thankfully, it looked untouched, and the girl's cowering hands looked devoid of any coins. But things could have been worse. There was also a note on the desk, proclaiming how much money the government was due to give him in a week's time for the "upkeep" of the orphanage. That money wouldn't be going to the orphanage, of course, everyone from the children to the Master knew that. Thankfully the girl couldn't read, and therefore hadn't thought the note to be important enough to slip it into her dress. If that note fell into the wrong hands, there'd be a lot of questions that could put Brys under a lot of suspicion for misappropriated funds. _

_A thought suddenly occurred to the man. What if the orphan girl was able to figure out the pieces of the puzzle? He'd seen her before, watching everything with big green eyes, taking it all in. Surely she wasn't as stupid as her quiet demeanor made her seem. If she told anyone about what was going on at the orphanage, then it could reach a higher and higher level of authority, finally getting to the king and therefore making Brys like a bug under a microscope. He'd be doomed if anyone found out what he forced his children to do, or what he did to them. He needed to get this situation under control; make sure the girl never spoke a word of this incident to anyone. _

"_What, are you trying to _read_?" Master Brys voice was cold, cruel, and demeaning. Juliette whimpered lightly, her skinny shoulders going up and down. Her eyes stared at the floor, terrified. _

"_I-I…" Her stutter got the best of her, and the girl wasn't able to get any words out. Just the presence of the Master made the girl fearful. He gave a scornful laugh, placing the book back on the shelf with a loud thud. He smirked when he saw the girl flinch._

"_Don't you know anything, you stupid girl? Reading is illegal for pathetic orphans. If anyone ever found out about this, they'd haul you off to the center of town, and hang you as a lesson to all the other orphans." There was a sick gleam in Master Brys eyes, as though he would enjoy a public hanging that involved one of the orphans, or better yet, Juliette herself. The girl felt like vomiting. _

"_Since I'm such a nice person though," here Brys felt his lips curl into a twisted smile "I'll just keep this as a secret. No one will ever know about you trying to read, and they won't kill you. I'll just keep my mouth shut. But I'll only do it for a price." Juliette shuddered; she didn't like the way Master Brys stared as her as though she was a piece of meat. It made her feel worse than 'adoption days.' The days were families would come in, looking for a child to take home. They would study each child with this expression… _

"_Wh-What…" Juliette whispered, feeling uneasy. Her eyes shifted toward the door. Could she make it in time? Probably not. But it was still and interesting thought to entertain. _

"_Time to pay up, girl." Brys had been watching this girl for some time now. He'd seen the way she moved, the way she stayed quiet and submissive. And he'd also seen how her body was starting to undergo a change that he was taking quite a liking to. He hadn't caned her in awhile, for fear that giving her bruises would demolish her beauty. But that seemed almost impossible. The girl stood out, even when she was dressed in rags, had bones sticking out, and had those childish freckles. Oh, yes. Brys had been watching her. _

_In a swift move, he came behind the girl. He slowly used his hands to massage the girl's shoulders, leaving the child more and more baffled, and feeling more and more unsure of what was going on. His hands felt like ice on her too hot skin, and she shuddered as she felt his fingers dig into her flesh. The girl then almost jumped a mile up in the air when she felt him press his nose against her hair, and inhale her scent deeply. _

_And that's when Juliette cracked. _

_Without thinking, the girl used her arm to deliver a backwards blow to the man's abdomen. Something didn't feel right about all this, something didn't feel right. The girl ignored the loud, bloody oaths coming from her master at that, and limped towards the door as fast as she could. Her hand and just barely opened the door when she was pulled back. The girl gave a horrific shriek of pain, as she was being pulled by her bad leg. _

_Master Brys, furious that the child would even dare try to strike him, raised his cane and savagely brought it down on the girl's body. Over and over again, he didn't stop even when the girl's screams attracted a small group of orphans who huddled around the door, watching with wide eyes. This was the worst beating one of their own had yet to have as of date. None of them moved forward to help Juliette; none of them were willing to risk their own bodies. _

_At last, when Master Brys had let up, Juliette lay on the ground like a mess. There wasn't a part of body that did not feel a fiery pain. She could already tell that somewhere on her head she'd been scratched, and now blood oozed into her dark curls. The girl felt like she was dying. Still, she managed to acquire enough strength to drag herself out of the room, though her strength was barely enough to crawl. Somehow, her ears managed to capture the low warning issued from Master Brys that if she told anyone about this, that he'd find her and, well, the other part wasn't very pretty. Then he added just a short sentence about how he always made sure that his prices were paid for. And then the door slammed shut, almost on Juliette's foot. _

_Terrified and hurt, the girl dragged herself as far as she could away from Master Brys office, before collapsing in the most pain she'd ever felt. In an almost sick, ironic way, the thing that hurt the most was her stomach. She still hadn't found anything to eat. And the girl had a feeling that if she ever went by Master Brys again he would…he would…the girl couldn't even think about it._

_That night, under the cover of darkness, Juliette fled the orphanage, determined to never come back. _

"…a-and I went…f-far away…that's wh-when you…f-f-found me." Juliette licked her lips, and finally went quiet. She was sore and even more tired from speaking aloud for so long. Her voice had gone from hoarse to nearly a dead whisper, and though she was ashamed to admit it, she was now pretty hungry too.

Belle blinked. Once, twice, three times. She did it over and over again. She tried to figure out what was happening. What was that tearing sound she kept hearing? Oh, now she could place it. That was the sound of her heart tearing apart at the seams. All at once the woman felt hot tears grace her vision; Belle, so strong, so reasonable, felt like someone had just taken her heart right out of her body, and ripped it up in front of her.

"I…I think…e-excuse me." Belle faltered in keeping her voice from cracking again. Her shoulders shook with the sobs she was holding back, and she couldn't even bare to look at Juliette in her shame. Standing up quite suddenly, the woman nearly ran out of the room.

Vincent looked startled, as though his wife running away had just woken him from a grim nightmare. He couldn't look at the orphan girl either; whether it was shame or hurt or everything mixed together, he didn't know. But at least he wasn't crying. Well, his eyes were watered, but he wasn't crying. Only thirty seconds after Belle left, he quickly followed, running after his wife as fast as he could, but not bothering to say a word to the teen in the bed.

Juliette, alone, scared, and confused, looked all around the room, as though somehow expecting someone to come out and explain what was happening. But somewhere in her mind, she knew what it was.

Belle and the king didn't believe her. That's why they hadn't said a thing after the girl had finished her story. They thought she was a liar. A stupid, pathetic, orphan liar who was so desperate that she'd make up any story to stay. Juliette had told her deepest, darkest secret, the one that haunted her when she closed her eyes. And no one had believed her. She'd still be sent back to that hell hole called an orphanage, and Master Brys would…he would finish whatever he had been starting with the poor girl.

Slowly, Juliette ran her sore left arm over her casted right one. She flexed the toes on her left foot, and then bit her knuckle to keep from screaming in pain. Her right foot gingerly touched her left one, and the girl was surprised to find an even thicker cast over her bad leg. Without even having to touch it, the girl also knew that there was a thin strip of bandages covering the spot between her shoulders and neck where the wolf had sunk it's teeth into her. And then the girl came to a conclusion; she was too weak and in pain to try to leave again. She'd have to stay here, on the mercy of Belle and the king, and wait for them to send her back to the orphanage.

With that in mind, the teenager did the one thing that she was at least good at; taking care of herself. The girl tucked herself back into the pillows, half coughing-half sobbing. She tried to lift herself up further to blow out the candle that lit up the room, but he body couldn't handle such a task. She fell back with a soft thump, her entire figure shaking like a leaf.

It only took seconds before the tears started to fall down her bruised cheeks. Once again, she'd failed. But this time, she hadn't just failed someone else. She hadn't failed Belle, she hadn't failed the king, she hadn't failed a single other soul. Oh no.

This time…she'd failed herself.

* * *

**Dun dun dun! Juliette's story! I bet you weren't expecting to see THAT when you went onto fanfiction today, were you? I guess now we all finally know why she fears men so much...geez, with someone like Master Brys as the only adult figure in her childhood, who wouldn't? Anyway, i just wanted to do a quick, sixteen page update for all my loyal readers and reviewers. Thanks for sticking it out with me this far guys; I swear I WILL finish this story. Just be patient and deal with me!**

I also updated my TLM fic, for those following it. Please review guys; more reviews make for a happier author, and happier authors like to update quicker. I know it's a pain, and I know your going to be like 'ugh, i'll just do it later...' but later never comes and then BOOM! No update. So that's why you gotta review! Five seconds you guys; just go down, click the little button, write even one word and publish the review! Please? :) 


	28. A Chip on Her Shoulder

Steady breathing. In, and out. Chest rises, chest falls. Juliette focused on this one aspect of herself to keep from falling into a deep pit of darkness and pain. How long had she been sleeping? What day was today? The girl could not tell. All she knew was the pain of her body and heart breaking down on her.

"Juliette?" A soft voice inquired, gentle hands brushing across her face. "Juliette, sweetie, there's someone here to see you." The soft voice—Belle—tried to make the words sound enticing, but nothing was enticing to Juliette nowadays.

She wasn't quite sure how long it had been since she'd been taken back to the castle, not that it mattered. Nothing mattered anymore. Her world, one that used to shine with promise, now felt bleak and dry. She spent her days sleeping. And when she wasn't sleeping? Pretending to sleep. It was the easiest way for people to leave her be.

"Please, honey. At least say hi to Chip." Belle spoke again in a soft tone, silently pleading with the teen to give _some_ sort of reaction. For weeks now all the child had done was lay in bed, refusing to even speak.

Juliette suddenly felt her mind go blank at that name. Chip? She knew a Chip. Chip was…Chip was that nice boy. Oh, just his _name_ made her heart beat fast! But what did Belle mean? 'At least say hi'? Did that mean…oh goodness; did that mean that Chip was _here_?

Quite suddenly, the girl forced her eyes to open wide. Big mistake. She hadn't seen the light in days, so imagine how much it hurt to open her green eyes. She winced in pain, before blinking a few times, letting the fuzziness disappear so that she could see again.

Her eyes first caught sight of Chip, his mouth slightly agape and his eyes wide as he stared at her while standing at the foot of her bed. Quickly, she tried to raise herself up in a sitting position….but found that she was too weak to do so. Well, of course she was weak, she reasoned. The only food that made it passed her lips was whatever someone forced down her throat. Shooting a pleading look to Belle, Juliette hoped that the woman would understand what she was trying to convey.

And the woman did. Silently, Belle pulled the girl up, and then propped her in that position with more than one thick pillow. Her expression was pulled tight with worry, though Juliette pretended not to notice. Pretending things weren't as bad as they really were seemed to be the only way for her to survive.

Suddenly feeling more abashed and self conscious then she ever had in her life, Juliette could only stare at Chip. In turn, Chip kept his lips firmly pressed together, and his eyes stared at the ground. Neither of the teens knew what to say. And to make the entire situation worse, neither of them wanted to talk, at least not with an adult in the room. It felt too…awkward. After a few moments of this, Belle cocked her head to the side, before straightening up.

"I think I hear the baby crying." Belle's voice said aloud, uncertainty ringing in it. She could feel the tension in the air between the teens, and she knew her presence just made it worse. So if she had to make up an excuse to leave them alone for a bit, so be it. Chip was a good boy; he would never do anything wrong to Juliette if left alone with her. "Let me go check up on her; I'll be back in a few minutes." Her gaze lingered on Juliette, before Belle sighed and walked out of the room, leaving the door slightly ajar.

Now with Belle gone, it seemed some of the awkwardness had disappeared. Not all, but some, which was good enough for Chip. He could never stand silences anyway.

"Gosh Juliette, you look terrible." Giving a slight, trembling laugh, Chip tried to start off a conversation by being blunt and up front. It's not like he could do anything else. The way the girl looked was going to keep distracting him until he said something about it.

Juliette's expressive green eyes looked flat and unresponsive, a completely turnaround from what Chip had been expecting. Her freckles seemed to just hang off of her face, dim and unhappy. Her hair was wild, unkempt, but most of all…each curl was limp, like a dead flower still attached to its stem. Her features were gaunt; bags lay under her eyes, and well, her eyes had sunk into what looked like her very skull. And before, she'd been too thin…well, now she looked like a practical skeleton. Literally, no meat on her bones. Just sallow skin that had healing black and blue bruises and scary looking cuts. All in all…Juliette looked like a poster child for children that were malnourished and injured.

"I…I'm trying." Juliette's hoarse voice spoke aloud, for the first time in days really. But her words made Chip's head jerk upwards, a curious look in them.

"You are?" Dumbfounded, the boy looked over the girl again, his brows furrowing in confusion. Juliette nodded ever so slightly, her breathing off. Chip attributed it to how injured he was. Oh, the girl would be mortified if he ever found out that just by looking at her he made her pulse quicken.

"I think you're lying." Chip finally answered, making Juliette's eyes grow wide. Lying? This was the first time she'd ever been accused of such a thing in her life! She wasn't lying! She couldn't, no, wouldn't go down to that level!

"Don't…l-lie." The girl retorted quickly, struggling to find the right words. Chip's head cocked to the side for a moment, before he righted himself and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Uh huh. If you're _really_ not lying, and you're _really_ trying, then how come you won't do anything besides sleep?" Just as he had thought, Chip's question as answered with hesitation. Juliette swallowed deeply, shaking slightly now, and tried to speak.

"D-don't…get it…y-you." Coughing slightly, Juliette pressed two fingers to her throat, trying to soothe the pain. She could hardly think about putting her words in order, much less trying to be grammatically correct. Chip's dark blue eyes studied the girl for a long moment, and he took a step closer to where Juliette lay limp in the bed.

"Okay then, tell me what I don't understand. 'Cause from here, it looks like you just gave up." Chip retorted, but not in a mean way. His voice bordered on the edge of curious, with a hint of accusation in his tone. Juliette looked away; her eyes focused on the sheets, and only the sheets. Desperately, she tried to ignore the pounding of her heart.

"I…bur-burdan. And…Belle and K-King…don't be-believe…I c-can't… orph-orphanage." Juliette pressed her bony hand against her throat again, wincing deeply at the pain that radiated from it. Her words were so hoarse, so pathetically small…but it was all she could manage.

"What does that have to do with you being all sad and worrying everyone?" Chip wondered, cocking his head to the side in confusion. He wondered, with a pang of hurt, if he was making Juliette feel bad with all these straightforward questions. It's just that…well, he'd never really known any girls around his age, nor had he ever known a girl who made him feel like this. Whenever he saw her lifeless green eyes look up at him with that sad expression, all he wanted to do was hug her tightly, never letting go. These new emotions thrilled and terrified him at the same time.

"…wo-worry?" Juliette answered Chip's question with one of her own. Her tone was puzzled, and her voice was a mere whisper. But she had to know, was Chip telling the truth? Were people really…worrying about _her_?

"Uh huh. Everyone's been really worried about you. Especially the Master." Chip answered Juliette's question, but instead of leaving the girl was a sense of understanding, he left her in a state of confusion.

"…wha-what?" Even her whispers were starting to be strained now, Juliette realized. But she still didn't understand. Why would the Master, the king, be worried about _her_? This was even stranger than knowing that other people were worrying about her!

"Yeah, you should see him ask Belle how you're doing every day. And every time Belle says that nothing about you has changed, he just gets this really sad look. But it's not just him—Belle, my Momma, Ara, Alex, Gemma, Lumiere, Babette, Maurice, Simone, Pierre, Jaq, Michelle, Cogsworth—I think he's only worried that no one's been doing their work because their all worrying about _you_—and even Veronique! And Veronique is _never_ worried about anyone else besides herself! Gosh Juliette, you've got the entire castle on their toes; even the people who haven't met you are worried about you! I mean, that's why my Momma made me come up here; I'm like the last ditch effort to get you to cheer up!"

Chip's eyes were bright as he said this, and his tone was filled with a worry that made him sound older than he really was. His eyes looked over the girl, fierce with the belief that he couldn't walk away with her like this. And indeed, Juliette looked anything but depressed at the moment. She looked…shocked.

The girl had been under the pretense that if she hid herself away from the world, she'd soon be forgotten. That way when they decided to send her back to the orphanage, the pain wouldn't be as bad. No one would be worried, or hurting because of her. But now, indirectly, the girl had caused things to be even _worse_.

There'd been more than one person to come into Juliette's room in the past few weeks. It was only now that things were clicking into place, the real reason for their visits. They'd probably all been begged to see the girl and try to do something, anything, to cheer her up. Juliette couldn't even remember how many people there'd been to see her, though there were a few that stuck out in her mind.

She remembered Webster, the man who had a thousand ways to say one word, and tried to get the girl interested in all of them. But one look from Juliette had proved that she was not going to pretend to understand what all those words meant. She remembered Angelique, the woman that knew what decorating was all about, had tried to catch her attention with a party soon coming up that she would have to decorate. Had she not buried herself within the pillows that day and pretended to be comatose, she might have actually answered the woman. She remembered Madame de la Grande Bouche, the woman who tried to enthrall her with a rundown on the latest fashions. 'Fashion' however was not something Juliette knew, or ever had, so she'd turned her face away and stared blankly at the wall.

These people…people whom she'd never met or heard of in her life were _worrying_ over her. She was making the king sad, she was causing Belle to hurt, and she was the cause of worry for more than one person.

Suddenly, the teenager felt her heart sink to her feet. She hadn't wanted this. Any of this. All she'd wanted was for people to understand that with her out of the way, things could be better. But even when she was out of the way, she was _still_ causing problems. She was still a burden. She couldn't do a single thing with the idea of doing it right, without it turning out wrong.

"I…I'm s-sorry." Juliette whispered, wincing as the pain in her throat shot up like a lightening bolt. But in truth, she was sorry. She was making everyone worry over her, when all she'd wanted was to make everyone not worry over her. Why was it that nothing could go right in her life?

"Aw, don't be sorry." Chip shrugged, giving a half smile. "Just try to get better, okay? Focus on happy stuff, like your friends, if it'll help. I know that always works for me."

Juliette scrunched up her brows, thinking Chip's words through. Her green eyes suddenly looked more weary than ever, as though everything that had been building inside them just collapsed into a heap. She lifted her head up again, letting her wide eyes meet Chip's, and in a tiny voice, she spoke aloud.

"I…don't g-got…no…fr-friends."

It hurt. Oh, did that hurt. It felt like someone just reached into the raw place where her heart used to be, and poured salt all over it. For a moment, the girl could almost feel tears well up in her eyes, before she forced them to disappear. There was no need. She hadn't said anything untrue.

Chip blinked. He ran a hand through his sandy hair for a moment, and then awkwardly shuffled his feet against the thick carpet. It was true, in a sick sort of way; Juliette really didn't have any friends. Adults didn't count, and the children were too young to know any better. But for some reason, it still hurt him to know that someone like the girl in front of him, someone who never asked for anything, wouldn't have a friend in the world. Well, the boy thought to himself, that was certainly going to change.

"Well, you may not have _friends_, but at least you've got _a_ friend. Me." Chip grinned easily, and finally felt comfortable enough to take a seat next to Juliette on her bed. The girl looked at him with wide green eyes, and for the first time throughout this entire conversation, something flickered in the girl's eyes. Something that hadn't been there before. Life.

"...you?" Juliette repeated in a dumbfounded state, trying to wrap her head around all this. A friend. She'd never had one of those before. Belle was…Belle was something of a mother figure, Juliette supposed. She'd never had a mother, so she wasn't quite sure if the way Belle acted was normal or not. Plus, Belle was older than Juliette. Was it even possible to be friends with someone not close to your age?

"Uh huh. I mean, there's nothing weird about it, nothing at all." Suddenly, Chip found himself laughing awkwardly, and his words started to run all together. "You're just a girl, and I'm just a boy. And we're just friends. See? Nothing weird. Absolutely no weirdness there. We're just two new friends, who've got nothing else going on because…"

Juliette felt her body straining to lean forward, and she saw Chip's doing the same. Her green eyes were wide, her heart pounded like a war drum in her chest, she could hear the blood rushing in her ears…but for some reason, all this felt...alright. She didn't understand it, but she knew that whatever was happening between her and Chip, it would be nice. So she let her body overtake her panicking mind, she let her lips purse out ever so slightly, she closed her eyes, and—

"Chip, Cogsworth is looking for you." Belle's voice suddenly broke through, pulling both Juliette and Chip out of their daze. Both teens jerked backwards quickly, blushing and looking away from one another. In his haste, Chip jumped off of the bed and brushed himself off awkwardly.

"Sultan must've made a mess again. Shoot." Still blushing ferociously at what- almost-happened, Chip grumbled lightly to himself. He was trying to play it off, make it seem as though nothing had happened. Quickly, he stole a look at Juliette. The girl had her eyes directed towards her hands on the bed, her own cheeks blushing a pretty shade of pink. If nothing else, the boy thought to himself, at least the almost-incident brought some color back to her features.

"Why don't you find out what happened first, and then make assumptions?" Belle asked, amusement running rampant in her eyes. She was trying desperately to hide her knowing smile, but it was getting harder and harder. So, that's why Chip had so readily agreed to try and cheer up Juliette. He had a little crush on her, and she had the same on him. How cute! The woman felt sorry that she'd interrupted them; had she known how close the two of them had been to kissing, she would have stayed away for a few more minutes. Oh well. Everything would happen in due course of time.

"Good idea." Chip acknowledged, his blush fading just a little. Awkwardly, he waved his fingers at Juliette, causing the girl to look up for just a moment, her green eyes wide and wondrous. "I'll see you later, Juliette." The boy said, grinning ever so slightly in his awkwardness. Belle kept silent throughout this, being a careful observer.

"T-Tomorrow?" Juliette questioned, the hope in her failing voice even making her wince. Was she really that desperate for someone like Chip to be a friend? It would seem so, considering the way her heart beat every time she caught his dark blue eyes looking at her.

"Um…" Chip faltered for just a moment, before looking briefly at Belle. Of course he wanted to see Juliette tomorrow, but it all depended on what the woman said he could do. After all, it technically wasn't right for him to be left alone, in a room with a bed, with a girl his age who was only dressed in her nightgown. Still, the encouraging smile and nod he got from the queen was enough for him to nearly jump for joy. "Yeah, sure. Tomorrow." Shooting another grin in Juliette's direction, the boy walked towards the door to leave.

In a motherly fashion, Belle kissed the top of his head and then straightened out his hair before gently pushing him out the door. Chip didn't even think twice about it; he'd known Belle since he was a little boy. She was like a good friend and a second mother to him all at once. However, when he thought about Juliette though, the word 'friend' just seemed…odd. With a slight frown, the boy shook out his head. A small crush was one thing, but thinking him and Juliette could be _more_ than friends? What was going on with him anyway?

"How do you feel, dear?" Belle mustered up the kindest tone she could, slowly reaching out a hand to tuck a wayward curl behind the girl's ear. Juliette only jerked slightly at the contact of her skin, but did not pull away. A major improvement from just a half hour before, Belle thought to herself.

For a long moment, Juliette just started to think to herself. Chip was right. She couldn't keep on like this, making everyone worry. Besides, if they were going to send her away soon anyway, she might as well make their last memories of her happy ones. That way, she hurt no one else, and everyone would stop worrying about her and move onto more important subjects. Plus, if Chip was going to come more often if she didn't act like she was in a coma, then it might all be worth it. So, looking up, the girl answered the woman's question with only one word.

"Hungry."

For Belle, it was the best thing she'd heard in awhile.

* * *

**SURPRISE! I'm back, I'm still living, and so is this story! Sorry for keeping everyone waiting for so long; since school started, I've been extremely lazy, tired, and unispired. But I refuse to give up on this story! It's killing me, because there's so few chapters left, and I want everyone to know what happens, but I'm just on too much of a tight schedule (not to mention extremely lazy) to finish it up! But it'll happen...eventually, so keep your fingers crossed! **

**P.S. For those following my TLM story, that also got updated tonight :) **


	29. Only Left Wanting

"…and _then_ the doggies started to go ruff-ruff-ruff, and Mommy she was—she said they could stay 'cause the doggies are just babies, but they don't look like Jovi, so I don't know _how_ they're babies, but it doesn't matter 'cause…"

As Alex continued on with his story, Juliette tried to pay as close attention as possible to him. Still, it was getting increasingly difficult, due, in part, because his story started to get more and more exaggerated as it went on. Well, that and the fact that she was starting to acquire a migraine from all his talking.

However, she knew interrupting the little boy would only disappoint him. After all, he seemed to have really wanted to tell her about the "doggies". But her mind was officially non-existent in this one-sided conversation. She had other pressing matters that were weighing her down.

According to Belle, since that "accident" with the wolves, she'd been in this place another two weeks. 'Weeks' as Juliette knew, meant a couple of days wrapped up together, which had to most certainly mean that she'd been here for much longer than she'd originally intended. 'Weeks' was not a good thing, not at all for an orphan girl who had a bad experience with staying in one place too long. Though she could be wrong; her mathematics skills were poorer than her penmanship.

"…and then Chip said she should sled into a _mountain_, but then he—then his mama told him to stop so he…"

Juliette's thoughts suddenly tuned in to the one name she could pick out of that sentence. Chip.

There was something frustrating about the boy. He was a light in her dark world, no doubt, but it was extremely complicated when it came to him. Sure, she liked listening to him talk, and sure, every now and then she didn't mind shyly raising a question or two so that he wouldn't stop. Alright, and she sort of liked the way he snuck her cookies, and she never minded that he always had a sort of smile for just her. But…

Chip was a boy. Boys grew into men. Men were cruel, heartless creatures who didn't think twice about destroying everything ever held near to innocent young girls. Not only that, but when around him, Juliette got this sort of fluttering feeling in her stomach, as though a thousand moths were flapping their wings all at once. It made her feel…giddy. She had to admit, there were moments when she'd leaned forward, so close to…to…to _kissing _him, and then…nada.

That's what worried the girl. How could she feel so good about someone who could very well become another nightmare?

"…and then I said I could beat her up, but then she had—but then she told Mama and Mama said I had to go to time-out, 'cause you can't—

BANG!

The slamming of a door opening at a terrifying speed sent Alex throwing himself into the orphan girl, and Juliette gripping the bed sheets with an ashen face. Her mind did not register the pain that came from Alex barreling into her; she only knew how terror stricken she was, and how much she would protect this little boy from whatever had opened the door so harshly.

"Ah ha! Found you!" A voice with a laugh far too big cried out, their heavy footsteps echoing within the silent room.

Juliette kept her head down, trying to keep as calm as she could possibly manage, though the thought occurred to her that she knew that voice from somewhere. It sounded so familiar, but where would she have…?

"Papa!" Alex's voice suddenly cried out, the sheer amount of loudness in it making Juliette give a wince. She had barely registered what he had just said when she felt him crawling away from her at lightning speed towards the person who had just walked in.

"Alexander, you were supposed to be in the nursery taking your nap an hour ago, not running around the castle!" The person scolded Alex, but, from what Juliette could tell, it was in an amused tone.

"Nuh uh; you don't gotta take a nap when you're not sleepy!"

"Says who?" The man laughed, and for a second, Juliette allowed herself a peek at the familiar voice. Her heart suddenly sank like a stone within her chest.

It was the king. _The_ king. The memory of his cruel words when he'd thought she wasn't around still echoed within her mind. He had apologized, and from Juliette understood he'd been slightly worried about her in the time since then, but that didn't take away the sting from his blunt truthfulness.

"Says me, Papa, I say so!"

Alex's voice suddenly jerked Juliette out of her thoughts, and the girl immediately dropped her still raised arms and wrapped them around herself. It felt like a slap in the face when she realized that Alex was not what she had convinced herself that he was. She looked at him and thought of him as that cute little boy that always visited her with stories galore. However, he was the crown prince, he was Alexander, he was…he was going to be king one day. It was time she started getting used to that.

"Well, you're going to be overruled!"

Suddenly there was a flurry of laughter and movement from the peripheral vision of Juliette's green eyes. She looked up quickly as she heard a shriek being issued from Alex, but what she saw was happening was far different from what she had assumed.

It was a warm sight to see, to be sure. Alex was being hung upside down by his ankles, and his shrieks were that of laughter and playfulness. His tawny hair was quickly becoming disheveled, though by the look of breathless happiness on his face the little boy did not care one bit. His father, the king, was the one holding him upside down, keeping a strong grip on the boy and laughing along with him in merriment. There was mischief in his blue eyes, but there was also a light that radiated off of people when they were at a moment of pure bliss.

For Juliette, it was an undeniable form a torture.

The girl fought back tears as she lowered her eyes miserably to the bed sheets. It was horrible for her to want more, after all that had been done for her here.

She'd been taken in, and taken care of, just because she'd been found in the snow. Her presence had caused tension, had hurt a marriage, and yet, she was still allowed to stay. Then, when she tried to leave so that she wouldn't be a nuisance any longer and almost ended up getting these peoples' innocent children killed, she was still taken back in and taken care of. Actually, they had _thanked_ her, praised her even, for managing to save the children, even though it was she that put them in that predicament. She should be grateful that she wasn't having her head put on a spike. She should be appreciative that she was in a place where warmth was considered a necessity, unlike the orphanage where you were considered lucky if the winter wasn't too harsh.

And yet…

It still burned. It still ached. It still felt like a punch in the stomach. Her guilt was unbearable at this point, but she had to acknowledge that yes, all the things that had happened recently were amazingly wonderful, but spoiled as she was now, Juliette suddenly wanted _more_.

She wanted…she wanted a family.

While Juliette was letting her thoughts spin within her mind, Vincent was trying to keep a firm grip on his son. Hearing Alexander laugh was making him laugh, and for just a second, he flashed his gaze upwards, trying to survey what, if anything at all, was even in this room.

And then his laughter suddenly died away.

He hadn't realized that this wasn't just any guest room; this was the one Juliette had been inhabiting for the past month and a half. Curiously, the girl kept her head down, those dark brown curls hiding away whatever secrets the girl's face may have told. But from the way she kept her head hanging it was obvious to Vincent that the child was…unhappy? But…why? Why would she be sad, just because he was in her room and him and his son were playing—

Oh. That's why.

Gently, Vincent placed his son upright on his own two feet, trying hard to focus on the boy now and then dealing with his guilt ridden thoughts later.

"Alright, fun's over. Now it's time for you to get to the nursery for a nap, Alexander." Almost sad to end this fun time now, Vincent got down on his knees so that he was the same height as his son. Or…somewhat of the same height.

"No! I don't wanna!" Alex protested, his brows pulled together in fierce resentment of his father's order. Vincent merely raised a brow.

"Alright then." Giving a shrug, Vincent stood up, easily making himself seem nonchalant. "I guess I'll just tell Mama…" Taking a step towards the door, even the king was surprised at how fast Alex grabbed his legs.

"No! Not Mama! I don't like—I don't wanna timeout, Papa!" Alex's voice cried out, before he released his father's legs and looked up at the large man with wide, terror filled eyes. He knew that when his mother got involved, it meant business. "I'm going now, Papa, I'm gonna go nap right now!"

Lickety split, before any other reverse psychology tactics had to be applied, Alex was bounding out of the room and in the direction of the nursery. Vincent gave a light chuckle to himself, leaning his head out of the door and seeing nothing but an unusually vacant hallway. That boy had a serious amount of speed, he'd give him that. But he was also the most easily appeased child, which probably had something to do with the fact that he had two other sisters that weren't much for quick solutions.

One down, one more to go.

"Um…Juliette?" Suddenly, his voice felt very awkward within the silent room. It was too loud, and the uncertainty within it just made this all very strange.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Vincent grimaced lightly and tried to give as much distance as he could between himself and the girl. No doubt she still felt sore that he'd simply run off when she'd confessed her true reasons for never wanting to return to the orphanage.

"Yessir?" A soft voice answered the loud one back, and Juliette found herself slowly lifting her head. Her green eyes met with the king's blue one's for just a moment, before she quickly turned her gaze back down. Should she be curtseying? She hadn't the faintest idea of what else to do in front of this royal man.

"I'm…uh…um…" Hesitant and unknowing of what to say, Vincent felt his eyes suddenly wander around the room, looking for something to converse about. The unspoken words, however, left more of a weight in the room.

"Hey! I know that book!"

The surprising direction of his overexcited words caused Juliette to give a slight flinch in fear, before slowly looking up at the king again. His eyes were focused on the nightstand, the girl noted. Following his line of eyesight, the teen finally understood what he was talking about.

"That's _A Midsummer's Night's Dream_, isn't it? By Shakespeare?" Desperate to find a conversation topic, Vincent had spotted and had latched onto the first thing he could find.

He expected Juliette to say something, anything in response to what he asked, but all she did was give a shrug and turn her head back so that it was staring at the bed sheets. Knowing exactly why she wasn't speaking with him, Vincent felt himself grimace slightly. Perhaps he could get the words out of her, like Belle did with him whenever he was in a bad mood.

"How do you like it, so far I mean?" Here Vincent gave a wince at the straining sound of his own voice. He felt like a child begging for attention, but being given absolutely none despite his trying too.

"I-I…I dunno." Juliette stammered, forcing her head to sink lower. She knew what the king thought of her book knowledge. He'd already made that very clear, in a blunt manner.

"You don't know?" Vincent wondered, some surprise spilling into his tone. Something about this wasn't right. "Haven't you been reading it?"

"No, y-your majesty. I can't r-read. I'm a-a eeliterate idiot."

Ashamed at having to admit such a truth out loud, Juliette swallowed deeply to make sure that she didn't start to cry. But, as the king had pointed out, she was his subject and therefore had to know that he was always right, and she was forever wrong. It was just how the world worked.

"But—But wasn't Belle teaching you to read?" Vincent stumbled over his words, trying to find a way to allow his mind to comprehend this craziness. If possible, he noticed Juliette hang her head further.

"She t-tried. But I'm a r-runaway orphan; not s-smart 'nough."

For a moment, all Vincent could do was stare at the child, dumbfounded at the words coming out of her. Now that he thought about it, Belle _had_ made a few offhand comments on how the orphan girl's once eager attitude to learn, to read, to do anything had faded considerably since…since that accident.

It was as though a light suddenly went on in Vincent's mind.

So that's why the girl was saying that she was an "eeliterate idiot" and a "runaway orphan" who wasn't not smart. He'd said those exact words out loud in anger, and though he'd apologized, it didn't matter. Words spoken in anger, or in jest, meant little to a person who had absolutely nothing. That is why Juliette, the ultimate people-pleaser, was giving up a chance for knowledge; she was doing it just so he'd be right about her.

What had he done?


	30. Haunting Confessions

Is a King, one who had an entire country that literally bowed to him, supposed to feel as though he hadn't any idea on what to do with a teenage girl? Because as of late, it seemed that the matters of state were merely tea-parties when compared to figuring out how to approach this orphaned girl in front of him.

Perhaps, Vincent thought to himself, perhaps if could sort of apologize again, or at least explain himself better, things would go a lot smoother. Hm. Well, considering that he was fresh out of other ideas, it was worth a good try.

"Juliette…" Vincent started off, hesitant, as though he was right back at the beginning of their conversation. "Juliette, you know that what I had said about you…You know that I was just angry, right? I didn't mean what I said."

"Master B-Brys said lots of stuff too. It didn't m-matter if h-he was mad or d-didn't mean it; i-it was always true." Juliette, her voice still so soft, replied in answer to Vincent's words.

Her head lifted upwards, and suddenly her intense green eyes were staring into those of her king. This time she did not look back down. He had to understand that the truth was the truth; no matter how one put it, those were the cold hard facts.

"What did he say?" There was an edge to Vincent's voice, a sharp edge that even he noted as unusual. He was not this girl's protector within the world; so then why did just the name of that man darken his mood?

"He s-said usual s-stuff." Not wanting to point out exact words, Juliette felt herself squirm slightly under the deep gaze of the king. "But at the e-end, he d-didn't care 'bout what he'd said no more. He j-just…he just wanted f-for me to…to pay u-up…"

Tugging at her unruly curls, the girl felt her features become confused as a certain thought passed through her mind. Before she even had time to comprehend the full extensity of this thought, she felt it coming off of her lips.

"I d-don't even know wh-what Master Brys wanted m-me to pay w-with."

Those words suddenly made Vincent give a startled jerk. His fury turned into horror as he realized a single, solitary fact: Juliette hadn't a clue what that man, that _monster_, would have done to her.

When she'd been telling this story and had stated her confusion over that exact moment, he had passed it off as the girl not understanding why someone would want to do that to a girl like herself. But now, after those words, after that confusion that had set so deeply in her green eyes, he knew better. And it made him want to be sick all over again.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you about…about men, and—and women…being together…and how some people…how some people like to take advantage of others?"

Vincent couldn't get his words straight. Not that he was the type of person to be asking a teenage girl these types of questions in the first place, but it went farther than that. He couldn't think straight. All that played in his mind was the image of this Master Brys trying to…trying to make a…a _deal_ of that sort with Juliette. And then his mind raced forward, to the image of the bruised and beaten girl just lying there in the forest, buried under snow, a high fever burning through her freezing body.

"No, s-sir." Noticing the king's horrified stare in her direction, Juliette subconsciously tugged at her nightgown, worried now that she had upset the king.

The innocence in her confused eyes spoke volumes; she really had no idea what he meant. No one had ever explained such a thing to her. But surely she was old enough to have known! After all, she wasn't _that_ much of a child…was she?

"Juliette," Vincent began slowly, this time the hesitance gone from his voice as he knew exactly what he wanted to ask. "How old _are_ you?"

A silence suddenly overtook the room. Juliette felt herself grow pale as her heart started to race forward, this time in dread. She'd known this question would come up sooner or later. The children had been bugging her about it since the very beginning, and even Belle had been giving her odd looks lately, as though the woman was trying to figure this out about her without being rude. Sighing a despairing sound, the girl winced as a preemptive strike and let her shoulders drop as her soft voice suddenly answered the king.

"I…I don't k-know."

"_What_?"

That was not what Vincent was expecting to hear at all. His horribly concealed shock bounced off of his tone, expressing more than he could have ever put in words. His confusion and his surprise were hand in hand, staring down this girl in front of him with his intense blue eyes.

"I was 'bandoned d-during winter, a-at the orphanage, a l-long time ago."

Juliette answered simply, seemingly agitated by the question. How was she supposed to know how old she was? Very rarely did any of the orphaned children know their ages. There's no time to keep track of the months and years that swirled around the world when you are working yourself to the bone just for a piece of hard bread.

"…you were abandoned?" Vincent's voice suddenly softened, the edge gone from it as he tried to piece this puzzle together. Juliette gave an eager nod, glad to be gone from that uncomfortable topic and onto one she was more familiar with.

"I w-was a problem and a-a burden. Th-they had too." Answering this question with a much greater ease than the ones before, Juliette blinked and furrowed her brows when she saw the king give a start, as though someone had just slapped in the face.

Were her answers truly that hard to hear? She had never thought they would be. After all, if she wasn't bothered by this, then why should others?

"_They_? You don't know _who _abandoned you?"

This conversation was getting worse and worse by the minute. Vincent felt his worry start to increase tenfold. He'd always assumed that the orphan girl's parents had died when she was young, as had his, and she could barely or could not at all recollect them. He'd never imagined, not even in his darkest thoughts about this girl, that she would have been abandoned. And never in his wildest dreams would he have thought that she would have no clue as to who would have given her up.

"No, s-sir."

Perplexed even more so now, Vincent continued on with his questioning, pressing the girl for more details about her abandonment.

"The person didn't even leave a note?" Juliette shook her head, signaling a 'no'. "I thought…I mean, if a person is going to abandon their child, I thought they always left a note with the details." Mumbling more to himself than anything, Vincent grimaced at the ground. His head jerked upwards when he heard Juliette's soft voice answer his comment.

"O-Only the lucky or-orphans g-get a note, sir."

"That's horrible." Sighing, the man felt his shoulders drop, a thousand guilt ridden thoughts riding through his mind. And then one of them in particular stood out, causing him to give Juliette an odd look. "If no one left a note, then how do you know that they had to give you up because you were a…a burden?"

"Th-They didn't e-even keep me f-for more than a couple 'o m-minutes."

At this, Juliette's features became oddly…angry. To be fair, it may have just been a trick of the light, but Vincent was sure he could see some storm raging beneath her submissive behavior. Speaking of the teen, what on earth was she saying about her birth parents?

"I don't...I don't understand." Failing to grasp the full extent of Juliette's words, Vincent felt himself compelled to tell the girl of his confusion. Surely there was a reasonable, comfortable, _nice_ explanation for all of this…right?

"P-People always 'b-bandon babies a-after the b-babies are big enough. I-I'm the only one t-that was 'bandoned on the st-steps at night right a-after bein' born; I was still a-all wet an s-stuff."

There was an edge to Juliette's voice, an edge the girl could not help but use. One decision, just one, impacted her entire life. She would forever be known as 'that orphan girl'. Whenever someone would say her name, they would follow it with the word orphan. Her lack of a family would be synonymous with people judging her, always believing that somehow, everything that bad that happened was due to her because she was an orphan.

"So they just…they just left you there at night, during winter, the moment after you were born?" Receiving a confirming nod from Juliette, Vincent tried as hard as he could to keep himself calm enough to continue questioning the girl.

"And if that wasn't bad enough, this Master Brys forced you to make shoes, let you starve, beat you so horribly that you limp, and then he tried to—tried to—"

Unable to even think about that possibility, Vincent let himself stop right then and there. The horror of an innocent Juliette, unknowing of any of these things, almost being hurt in that way…it felt him with a mixture of disgust and fury.

"It d-don't matter no h-how," Juliette started softly, a hurt in her voice that could have made angels cry. "N-no people were e-ever gonna 'dopt me, even w-without a limp, a-and bruises, and a n-not hungry stomach."

Vincent blinked, feeling as though he had just lost another piece of the puzzle. Just when things were starting to make sense, the girl blindsided him with this. But he couldn't blame her. She didn't know any better; she was trying to make him understand in the best way she could.

"Explain, please." Vincent requested in an equally soft tone.

He became acutely aware that this was probably the longest the girl had ever spoken, to anyone, and that he'd been questioning her about all this for a good fifteen minutes. She looked a bit tired, but other than that, she seemed fine enough. He didn't understand why Belle could get so worked up about the girl 'needing her rest'.

Juliette gave her king a look of uttermost hurt coupled with a loud yawn. Her eyes focused on the bed sheets once more, trying hard not to well up with tears.

"People…th-they wanna 'dopt sometimes, s-so we all had to line u-up. They…they p-point and say 'No, she's t-too skinny' or 'He's too u-ugly'. Then they…th-they would get t-to me, an always say 'N-Never…she's t-too _different_'."

Choking back a sob, the girl gripped at the collar of her nightgown, trying to force herself not to cry. Her green eyes finally looked back up at the man in front of her, her bottom lip trembling as she confessed the cruel realities of her world.

"A-And I'm too old…I'll never, e-_ever_ be 'dopted now."

Her voice a mere whisper, the girl felt something tug at her, something telling her to go further. Perhaps he would understand. His previous words may have sliced through her heart like a dagger, but his background as an orphan would probably allow him to understand. So the girl, with her large green eyes, her dark-brown curls half frizzed from a lack of proper care, and freckles galore, said what she only knew as the truth.

"All I e-ever wanted was a f-family, and maybe a little c-cottage where w-we could all be…a-all be…"

"Happy?" Vincent filled in, grimacing. Juliette, startled out of her reverie, took a hesitant second to nod, before she quickly used the sleeve of her nightgown to wipe away her tears.

"B-But…you can't be h-happy when you're gonna g-go back to Le Orphange de la Misère i-in Pibrac." Juliette's lip trembled even harder now, and the tears she had wiped away suddenly prickled once again in her eyes. She started to shake, slightly, and her breaths started to come out in erractically.

"Pl-Please…I-I know you don't like me…please sire, d-don't make me g-go back. Please…Please…" Her tears started to fall, one right after the other, making a path down her too-worn face. Her sobs started to wrack her body, and before Vincent understood what was happening, Juliette was in full blown hysterics.

"No…please, don't do that…" Trying, and failing, to plead with the girl to stop her tears, Vincent felt an overwhelming urge to reach out and do something, though it escaped him what. He'd never been able to handle the tears of others.

Grimacing as though in pain, Vincent felt himself stretch out an arm, as though his subconscious thought that he could do something from five feet away. But he had to do something. Juliette's tears had come on so suddenly, so forcefully, and he was still reeling from all the information he'd gathered here that he hadn't anytime to prepare of this sort of thing. Perhaps if he was—

"Vincent?"

A shocked voice behind him suddenly made the man give a startled jerk and swivel around in surprise. Belle was standing in the doorway to this room, a book loosely held in her hands. Her brown eyes stared down Vincent's blue ones for the longest thirty seconds of either of their lives, before she broke off contact and her eyes flickered over his shoulder to the hysterical teenager lying in the elegant four poster bed.

For a long moment, Vincent could see everything being mapped in his wife's eyes. Her version of what had happened to make Juliette sob so hard. And from the hard look he was currently receiving, this story did not cast him in a good light.

"It's not like that, Belle." Answering the question in her eyes rather than the one she was probably thinking about, Vincent felt his vocal chords strain to pick up that pleading tone that he only had to use with his wife.

"Isn't it though?" Grinding her teeth together in apparent frustration, Vincent waited for the blow, the yelling, the big thing to be dropped to let him know how much trouble he was in now. But Belle simply gave him a hard look and jutted her chin in the direction of the door when he opened his mouth to protest.

"Just go, Vincent. Just go." Shaking her head—was that in disappointment?—Belle gave her husband a hard shove out the door of Juliette's room and slammed it behind him.

For once, Vincent barely even realized what was happening.

His mind too fogged over to understand the full extensity of all this, the man did what any man would do in his position. He decided to go to his study, have a glass of brandy to calm his system, and then sit and think about his next move.

* * *

**SURPRISE! **

**Two chapters after a loooooong wait. Sorry to keep you all in the dark for so long. School got crazy, and then I had a Cinderella fanfic that took up all my time (I had to finish it off; I would have gone insane had I not!). But I'm back now, i swear it. I'm going to focus all my time on this story first, so that I can finish it off, and then I will finish offmy TLM fic (for thIDE following it) and THEN I'll most likely start this cycle again! :p The life of a writer, huh?**

**Please review!**


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